


Kaleidosope of Emotions

by highladyofgothamcity



Series: Colors of the Wind [1]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Accidental Flirting, Alec doesn't like Magnus, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Kinda, Kittens, M/M, Magnus thinks he's straight, Shadowhunter Magnus, Warlock Alec, bisexual awakening, no beta we die like men, reverse au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-02
Updated: 2019-11-24
Packaged: 2020-07-29 01:08:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 26,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20073640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/highladyofgothamcity/pseuds/highladyofgothamcity
Summary: Many people would consider it inappropriate for one of the top Shadowhunters of the New York conclave to have an "interpersonal relationship" (Ragnor's words, not his) with the local High Warlock. Magnus Bane had never been one to care about what was inappropriate in the eyes of others.The first time he met Isabelle Lightwood, by far the best dressed Downworlder he'd ever seen, Magnus knew they were destined to be friends for life, damn what everyone else though.Or: a reverse au because there aren't enough of these featuring: Magnus Izzy friendship, warlock Lightwood's, daylighter Jace because why not, Alec really not liking Shadowhunters, and a serious sexuality crisis on Magnus' part





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to point out any mistakes you find in gramor or otherwise. I don't live in New York, have never lived in a city in my life so I don't know how it works. Literally at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to point out any mistakes you find in gramor or otherwise. I don't live in New York, have never lived in a city in my life so I don't know how it works. Literally at all.

Many people would consider it inappropriate for one of the top Shadowhunters of the New York conclave to have an "interpersonal relationship" (Ragnor's words, not his) with the local High Warlock. Magnus Bane had never been one to care about what was inappropriate in the eyes of others.

The first time he met Isabelle Lightwood, by far the best dressed Downworlder he'd ever seen, Magnus knew they were destined to be friends for life, damn what everyone else though.

Including the thorn in his side that he called his parabatai.

"This is a horrible idea." Raphael pointed out from the bed, just as he always did when Magnus was about to go meet Isabelle.

Magnus ignored him, just like always. Instead he carefully scrutinized his wardrobe, silently wishing he'd listened to Catarina when she told him to get his paperwork done last week instead of messing around. But he'd put it off, and then got so caught up in trying to get it done so he didn't get benched, that he'd forgotten to take his laundry down to the washers and now had nothing to wear.

Well, that was an exaggeration. He had plenty to wear. Just nothing that was  _ speaking  _ to him. Magnus pushed a row of hangers to the side, hoping to find something.

His eye caught on a red tank top that had fallen to the ground. Perfect. Now if only he could remember where he'd put that pair of skinny jeans…

Twenty minutes later he was on his way to Brooklyn. He'd pulled on his leather jacket because it was finally getting chilly enough for one.

Isabelle's loft was a fifteen minute walk that passed quickly.

They'd met four months ago when she'd been hired to re enforce the wards. He'd been coming in from an early shift and struck up a conversation easily, complimenting her shoes. They'd swapped numbers and agreed to go shopping together sometime.

The one trip had turned into a deep friendship of fashion advice, being sassy and judgemental together, and binging crappy mundane TV shows.

Humming, the Shadowhunter makes his way up several flights of stairs (the elevator has been broken for three weeks). But he's in great shape and isn't even winded when he reaches Isabelle's front door. Knowing the warlock never locked her door, he walks right in. They always met up on Thursday, his day off, so he's expected.

Isabelle is lounging on her sofa, reading on her tablet. She looks up, hearing the door open. "Magnus! What are you doing here?"

The Shadowhunter frowns. "Um, the normal? Is this not a good time?"

Izzy looks down at her tablet, checking the time, a surprised expression on her face. "Sorry, I forgot it's Thursday." It's clear she isn't expecting company, as her warlock mark is unglamored, open for any to see.

Magnus has seen and heard of many different warlock marks, but Isabelle's is unique. A pattern that looks like vines covers the back of her hands and wind their way up her arms. According to her, the two strands meet on her back and make a single line down her spine, splitting again at the hips to twirl down her legs.

They work like a very accurate mood ring, changing colors to reflect what she's feeling, though Magnus doesn't know enough about the colors to know what means what.

Izzy shuts off the tablet and sets it on the couch, getting up to hug him like always. Both of them are very clingy people who like physical contact with both friends and lovers. 

Magnus has plenty of lovers but there's something he just loves about non sexual intimacy. Another reason their friendship works so well.

When he pulls back, her glamor is in place. He doesn't take it personally.

"Izzy where's your sug- why is there a Shadowhunter here?" A new, deep voice says from the kitchen door.

Magnus turns to find a man, a very attractive man that looks like a taller, hazel eyed version of Izzy, if Izzy were to dye her hair a strange mix of grey, blood red, violet, and... strawberry pink? Interesting choice, but Magnus isn't one to judge.

"Alec, this is Magnus, that new friend I told you about. Magnus, this is Alec, my twin brother. He's staying with me while he's in New York doing research for a project."

Now Magnus recognizes him. Izzy has a photo of the two of them, plus Jace Wayland and his Seelie girlfriend on the wall, though he has black hair in it.

"Nice to meet you." Magnus offers a hand, which the warlock ignores.

Alec grits his teeth and says, "Isabelle, can I talk to you for a minute. In private." It's not really a question.

Magnus' friend looks confused, but follows her brother into the kitchen, closing the door behind her.

_ Well that was weird,  _ Magnus reflects.  _ Also, hot damn. _

Despite what many assume because of the way he dresses, and likes to wear a bit of makeup and paint his nails, Magnus considers himself straight. There's a long line of girls that can attest to that.

But he's not  _ blind _ . Alec Lightwood is definitely a looker, even if he had been wearing an old sweater with three visible holes and a large stain in it.

Unsure if how long this will take, Magnus flops down on the couch and pulls out his phone, deciding to play Candy Crush until they emerge

And eventually they do, Alec scowling and Izzy smiling tightly.

Alec's hair is now black, just like the picture.  _ That must be his mark,  _ Magnus realizes,  _ the colors of his hair changing to match his emotions like Izzy's vines. _

No wonder he'd been pissed to find a random Shadowhunter here, with his glamor down.

The male warlock glares at him. Maybe he just isn't a fan of Shadowhunters?

"So, where we're we?" Isabelle asks, flipping on her tv.

"Episode six of season one, I believe." Apparently they're just going to continue on with their normal day. Recently that includes watching supernatural themed shows and laughing about how incorrect they are. Simon had suggested they start with Supernatural itself, but neither Izzy or Magnus we're ready for a soon to be fifteen season commitment. Yet.

So Teen Wolf it is.

It's horribly cring worthy most of the time, but there are good moments of humor.

Magnus expects Alec to go back to the kitchen and resume whatever he had been doing before. Instead he flops down in the purple armchair. Which just so happens to be Magnus' favorite armchair, where he always sits.

The Shadowhunter huffs a bit, but takes a seat on the couch next to Izzy without a fight. 

He can't help the longing glances to the most comfortable chair in the world, though. And the handsome warlock sitting in it.

÷÷÷

They end up watching three episodes. Magnus half hopes Alec will leave, but he stays the entire time, only half pretending to watch the show.

But it's obvious he's watching Magnus the whole time.

It makes Magnus uncomfortable enough that he leaves a bit earlier than usual. He tells Izzy that he has work to do, and his friend sees right through his lies. Thankfully she doesn't call him out.

Normally Magnus isn't the type to run away, even when he really should, much to his team's annoyance.

But Alec clearly hates him and wanted him out of the apartment.

"Wow, someone not wanting you around. Shocker." Raphael rolls his eyes, entirely unsympathetic of Magnus' problems. Some parabatai.

Cat is a bit nicer. "Well, sometimes you can be a bit... much, Magnus. Maybe he's just the type that prefers quiet."

Magnus flops down on the mats, not even bothering to pretend to be stretching. Raphael and Cat grab staffs and begin to strike at each other. Beside Magnus, Simon hums in contemplation.

"Maybe Cat's right. Izzy said her brother spends most of his time in the Spiral Labyrinth, right?" Magnus nods, unsure of where the younger Shadowhunter is going with this. "Sounds pretty introverted. And you're very extroverted. Being around you, especially when he wasn't expecting to have to, probably came as a shock."

"But I didn't interact with him! Not really. All we did was watch Teen Wolf while he glared. He just... doesn't like me."

Simon wrinkles his nose. "Still with the Teen Wolf. I'm telling you, Supernatural is the way to go. It's as funny but not as cringe worthy. Plus, then you might understand some of my jokes!" 

Magnus snorted. That wasn't very likely.

Simon had grown up in the mundane world. His mother had been a Shadowhunter that had fallen in love with a mundane, a forbidden romance. Instead of breaking it off, Elaine had elected to be stripped of her runes and exiled in order to marry him.

Simon had grown up knowing the truth, but had been forbidden by his mother to interact with the Shadow World. Until he was sixteen, and his entire family had been killed in a car accident. Having no one else to turn to, Simon had come here, to the New York Institute and accepted his birthright as a Shadowhunter.

But even years of training couldn't shake the mundane-ness of him. Magnus was secretly glad about that. Simon had introduced him to several things in the human world, like their music and television shows. A lot of it was fascinating. He also was able to get along pretty well with Downworlders, resulting in Cat's parents, the Heads of the New York Institute, assigning him to the position of assistant diplomat to the Downworld, a position Magnus had hoping for.

Magnus was only a little bitter.

"At least pretend you're going to train." Raphael complains, interrupting his thoughts. Really, why had Magnus decided tying their souls together was a good idea again?

"Alright, alright. We're coming."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have cried three times trying to get this to post. I'm not even kidding it's a nightmare. My internet connection is shitty at best.
> 
> I'm not done with the outline yet but I think this is going to be about ten chapters, hopefully about this length. School starts in two weeks for me, and it's my first year on Color Guard which is going to eat a large chunk of my free time. The hope is an update every Thursday, but no promises


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not my favorite chapter but then again when am I ever satisfied with my writing?
> 
> Many thanks to the people on the malec Amino who encourage me and are just very lovely in general. Swing by there if you want to want to see some bonus content and participate in polls
> 
> It's technically Wednesday night for me but I had complications posting the last chapter, and the first try on this one, and I'm not taking any risks on it not working tomorrow

Friday night Magnus, Raphael, Cat, Ragnor, and Simon are directed to an abandoned building in Queens swarming with demons.

A nest, but of a species that are normally solitary hunters, not the kind that group together.

It's more a struggle than they were expecting, but nothing they can't handle. By the time the final demon is a smear of ichor on the floor boards, Simon is drawing an iratze to help a slash on his arm heal, Ragnor is limping a bit, and he can feel the bruises forming of Raphael's back through their bond.

Magnus twists his staff so that it collapses into a six inch stick and returns it to the holster on his belt. "Nice job guys." He says cheerfully. "And I didn't even ruin my nails this time. Sweet!"

"Quit worrying about your nails and look at this," Cat orders from another room.

She's standing in what might have once been a kitchen, staring at a chunk of stone sitting on what might have once been a table.

It's no larger than Magnus' bathroom sink, a sandy red color, carved with runes that he doesn't recognize, probably demonic. The most disturbing part is the weird energy it's giving off.

That part is definitely demonic.

"That's what drew all of them here," Simon guesses.

"Most likely." Ragnor agrees. "We can't leave it here. But I'm definitely not going to touch it. So how are we going to get it back home?"

Rapheal shrugs off his jacket, and then Cat ends up running to a nearby corner store, coming back with a laundry basket. Despite its size, the chunk of rock weighs quite a bit. The five of them trade it back and forth on the train ride and short walk back to the Institute. The mundanes don't give them a second look, thankfully.

The Shadowhunter on guard outside the door raises an eyebrow at them. Maia, Magnus is pretty sure her name is.

“What is that, and will I get in trouble for letting it in the Institute?”

Magnus sets the basket on the ground and lifts the jacket to let her see. “We’re going to stick it in the vault until we get further instructions. My guess is that they’ll call in Izzy to have a look, since it's more her type of thing then anyone here.”

Maia shrugs and lets them pass without fuss.

Once the chunk of rock is safely locked up, they fill out the proper paperwork and Ragnor gives a verbal report to Cat’s dad they officially clock off and disperse to shower and sleep.

÷÷÷

As Magnus predicted, Izzy is sent pictures of the rock and schedules to come in Monday morning to look at it in person. As a known friend of the High Warlock, Magnus is assigned to be her escort, as per protocol for any non Shadowhunter visitors. Normally he’d complain about having to be up so early, especially after a shift in the ops center followed by a short patrol responding to a distress call in Queens. But he hasn't been able to see Izzy since that awkward afternoon that he met Alec.

They’d texted several times, Izzy apologizing for her brother. Apparently Simon’s theory about the warlock not being the kind of person who dealt well with surprise social interactions had been correct.

He also didn't have the highest opinion on Shadowhunters as a whole. She chalked it up to several decades sporadically teaching at the Academy in Idris.

Since Magnus himself had only attended a year of the Academy before quitting, he couldn't really blame Alec’s opinion of his kind. Not if his primary exposure to Shadowhunters had been at that hellhole.

But even if Magnus could understand Alec's reason for hating Shadowhunters, that didn't mean he wanted to spend more awkward time in the warlock’s company.

So when Monday morning rolls around and he sees Alec waiting for him on the steps of the Institute, not Izzy, he is barely able to stop himself from cursing out loud.

Instead he ducks behind a pillar and hopes Alec hadn't seen him, pulling his phone out.

  
  
  


To Izzy: Where are you and why's your brother here?

  
  
  


From Izzy: I looked at those pictures and Alec is more suited for this job than me.

  
  
  


To Izzy: yeah but he hates me! I thought we were friends how could you do this 2 me?!?

  
  
  


From Izzy: yes exactly. We're friends and I want my brother to like my friends and vise versa.

  
  
  


From Izzy: plus, he's living with me for the next few months at least so you should at least be able to be civil around each other

  
  
  


To Izzy: I was perfectly civil. It was him who was a jerk

  
  
  


From Izzy: Alec just warms up to people slowly. But I think you guys would get along fantastically if you gave it a try

  
  
  


To Izzy: okay it's not as if I have a choice today

Magnus checks his makeup and hair using the selfie mode on his camera. Satisfied that he looks as good as it gets, he casually steps out from behind the pillar.

Thankfully, Alec's back is to him.

"Hey," Magnus calls. The warlock turns, eyes narrowing.

They each take a second to assess the other. Alec looks comfortable but professional in nice black pants, a green shirt, and a black jacket. Magnus wants to ask where he got the boots he's wearing. They look like they could do some serious damage, and are tall enough to fit a knife sheath. The black laces are a bore, but he could replace them. Maybe with rainbow ones…

"Oh. It's you." Alec sounds very disappointed. Maybe Izzy hadn't filled him in all the way either.

"Yep. Me." Magnus, who is normally the master of talking and getting people to like him, is for once completely lost. "Um, right this way. I'm supposed to take you down to the vault were the artifact is stored. My team was the one that found it, so I should be able to answer any questions you might have."

Alec sighs and nods, waving a hand in a gesture that clearly means let's get this over with then, somehow making it look like he's about to walk into his own execution.

The elevator ride is very awkward. Magnus finds himself wishing he'd brought along Simon. The kid was an expert at filling silence of any kind. Thankfully once they reach the fourth subfloor, Alec is too absorbed in his work to send Magnus dirty looks.

He pulls a notebook, pen, camera, and a pair of gloves from nowhere and begins to carefully examine the red rock, taking pictures and jotting down notes.

Magnus pulls up a chair and alternates between online shopping, playing games, and texting his friends and the mundane girl he hooked up with last week. He might have a strict no dating policy, but there was no harm insex with the same person more than once. The girls always knew his rule, and were often looking for the same thing.

Neither of them talk much over the next two hours. Alec asks a few questions about where they found the rock, the demons guarding it, and how they got it back here, but otherwise pretends Magnus doesn't exist. 

After filling out an official report, Alec waves a hand, causing all of his stuff to disappear.

"The man I spoke to on the phone this morning informed me that the money will be transferred to my account later today.’’ Alec hands Magnus the folder. “Here are my findings. Conclusion: it's simply a piece of a building that slipped here from a demon realm like most demons that you fight. It acted as a beacon, and should be perfectly safe as long as it remains in this vault on holy ground." Alec hands Magnus the folder.

Magnus takes it. “Um, I’ll just escort you out then?”

The warlock’s voice is as dry as the sahara when he replies. “Yes, that would be nice, Shadowhunter. Couldn't very well have a Downworlder wondering around unsupervised now could you?”

“That’s not what- thats not what I meant!” Magnus exclaims to empty air. Alec is already strolling casually to the elevator. “Damn it.”

What is it about Alec Lightwood that makes him say the wrong thing, every time?

÷÷÷

As he always does when lost and in need of answers and a plan of action, Magnus ends up in front of Catarina’s bedroom door. She, of all his friends, is probably the wisest and almost definitely the least likely to laugh at him.

He raps lightly on the door.

“Come in. Unless you're Simon, in that case, go away, I still don't want to watch Star Wars again.”

Magnus grins and swings the door open, “Fortunately for you, I am both more good looking and have better taste in movies. I also come bearing gifts.”

The dark skinned Shadowhunter is sitting on her bed, also dressed in pajamas. Unlike Magnus and his matching green silk sleep clothes, Cat is wearing a faded and oversized Queen shirt and a pair of shorts. She grins as he holds up a walmart bag.

  
  
  


“Wow, we haven't had a sleepover in ages. Much less one serious enough for snacks. Tell me, who’s the lucky girl that has you so freaked you’d seek advice from me?”

Magnus tosses the bag to her and flops down on her blue bedspread. “First of all, aside from me, you probably have the most luck with romance of our group. Which is kinda sad if you think about it. Second, it's not girl problems. You remember Alec, Izzy’s brother?”

She nods, and he explains everything that had happened that day.

Cat chews thoughtfully on a chocolate bar. “I honestly don't see the problem here Magnus. So you channelled your inner Simon a bit and were socially awkward in front of some guy. Why is this a big deal?”

Magnus groans and opens a bag of skittles. “But he isn't just some guy. He’s Izzy’s brother. I want, I need him to like me. You know how important she is to me. And I just...want him to not hate me, or at least trust me alone with her. Especially since they’re currently living together. It would make our hangouts much better if he wasn't constantly around looking at me like...like a hawk about to strike!”

He squints at the ceiling, temporarily distracted by the thought of Alec with them getting their nails done, sitting in the chair across from him. Too paranoid of taking his eyes off the Shadowhunter to even look at the color options. Having lime green acrylic toes as a result. Magnus can't help but smile at the mental picture.

“I don't think Izzy will stop being friends with you just because Alec doesn't like you. But I get that you two being on civil terms would make things a lot more comfortable for everyone. So I guess just… be friendly?”

“What kind of bullshit advice is that?” Magnus protests, throwing a pillow at her.

Cat laughs and swats it aside, “I mean, be a suck up. Initiate conversation, learn about him and his hobbies. Convince him that you're trustworthy, not a backstabbing bloodthirsty Shadowhunter of old, looking to kill them and carve their Marks off.”

Magnus looks at her, shocked. “He doesn't think I'm going to do that. Does he? Angel, no wonder he hates me!”

“Okay, that might have been an over exaggeration. But you have to think about this from his point of view. You're pretty well known in the Downworld, how would you like it if some guy with your womanizer reputation started hanging out with Madzie or Rosa?”

“I’d kill them. But Izzy and I aren't like that.”

“Well, does he know that? Sure, she's told him you're just friends, but she’s not who he's worried about. “

“Okay, thanks Cat. You've given me a lot to consider.” Swiping the last thing of M&M’s Magnus makes his way to the door.

“Wait, where are you going? What happened to our sleepover?”

“Rain check, promise. I have work to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time: Magnus does a bit of stalking, 800 extra words of backstory that I initially didn't plan, accidental flirting, kittens, a new character
> 
> There's a possibility of the next chapter being updated a week early because next Thursday is my first day of school (I'm incredibly nervous and really not ready to go back to having to interact with people again)
> 
> My Tumblr is highladyofgothamcity (if anyone wants to tell me how to link stuff I would be very happy with you)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of words, too much backstory, attempted bonding/accidental flirting, kittens, actually bonding, new character (s)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First 800 words? Accidental backstory. Wasn't supposed to be there. Whoops. I'll edit later
> 
> I'm posting it now in hopes of waking up tomorrow morning to lots of comments and hits to help enegize me before school (*wink wink* please?)

Magnus has seen enough crime shows to know that his room currently looks like a serial killer's den. Or a hardcore fan/stalker’s basement.

“Jeez Magnus, I know you're not used to people not adoring you, but assassinating the guy seems slightly extreme,”

“What?” Magnus tears his gaze away from his tablet to squint at Ragnor. “Why are you in my room?”

The twenty six year old Shadowhunter shakes his head. “I let myself in after knocking several times. You didn't answer. Also, I love you like a brother, but if you're planning on killing this guy and breaking at least five laws in the process, I really feel like I should report this to the Losses. Or at least my parents.”

The younger man huffs. “There is no reason to get the heads of the Institute involved, or your parents. I'm not going to _ kill _ him.”

Ragnor does not look convinced or reassured. “Of course. You just have a wall with pictures of him and extensive notes about his life because…”

"Because, my dear cabbage, I am going to make him like me. But I need to know stuff about him first. And all of this information was readily available on his Clave file or a few texts to Izzy."

Alexander Gidion Lightwood, born 1631 to an English Lord. An accomplished scholar, famous for his work in magical theory. An expert on the demonic viruses, especially the one responsible for vampires. 

He had a long history with Shadowhunters, having been present at the very first meetings of the Accords, and a total of fifty years teaching at the Shadowhunter training academy. 

Interestingly, a large chunk of his more recent history was classified. Magnus hadn't bothered to try and get clearance to see it. 

A very serious, studious, grumpy person, sho loved his sister and their friends a lot. Who's favorite color was dark green and hated shopping with a burning passion.

Very different from Magnus.  _ So how to win him over? _

"Magnus. Magnus?" Ragnor waves a hand in front of his face.

The dark haired man blinks, refocusing. He hadn't even been aware that he'd drifted off.

"Right. Why are you in my room Ragnor? We don't start our patrol for another half hour."

His friend's face is grim. "I have bad news. We're going to have a visitor from Idris."

"Who? And why on earth do you look so grave about it?"

“Lorenzo Rey.”

_ Lorenzo Rey.  _ Even now, so many years later, the name still sets off a landslide of unpleasant emotions. Betrayal, anger, disappointment, sadness, humiliation. 

The worse part? The bad memories that come flooding back at the mention of the man are accompanied by just as many good ones. Sparring together, food snuck up from the kitchen and eaten as a reward for getting a question right while studying. Late nights when they should both be asleep, instead whispering secrets and dreams back and forth. 

“Why is he coming here?”

“Magnus-”

_ “Why?” _

Ragnor sighs. “Consul’s orders. New York is the testing ground for some major new security upgrades that he apparently designed and wants to oversee the initial testing of.

“How long is he going to be here?”

“Six months, give or take. If the testing period of the program is a success, it will become the new standard in Institutes all over the world. He arrives on the 8th.”

Ten days. Magnus has ten days to prepare to face the guy that inspired a large chunk of his trust issues and for years prevented him from making any friends and isolating the ones he had. The reason he had nearly refused Rapheal’s offer to be parabatai, and the reason he’d barely survived his first and only year at the Shadowhunter Academy.

The bastard probably picked New York just to mock and torment him. 

Magnus takes a deep breath, fighting the rising panic. “Does anyone else know?”

“I only learned about it a few minutes ago. Joshua and Melody called a meeting of all the team leaders to brief us, and we’re supposed to tell our teams. I’m planning on catching Cat, Rapheal, and Simon after patrol tonight, but I knew I should tell you first.”

They both know how that's going to end. Cat will mother hen Magnus for a while, maybe even try and get her parents to make Lorenzo find another Institute to test his project on. Rapheal will get cold and angry, barely talk to them for a while, and quietly plot murder. Simon, who was not around all those years ago, will be completely clueless about why everyone is so upset, but will probably hate Lorenzo with them in solidarity. 

“Okay.” Magnus says quietly. 

“Okay? That’s all you have to say?”

“What else is there to say? It's going to happen, no matter what I say or do. No one but you guys know what happened between us, and I want it to stay that way. Now, move along, I have work to do.”

“Right, stalking the warlock who doesn't like you,” Ragnor is obviously going for casual, and very much failing. “I’ll just...let myself out then. See you for patrol. Don't be late.”

“Close the door on your way out darling.”

Magnus attempts to return to the video he had been watching, but is unable to. But he doesn't realize how heavy he's been projecting until his phone light’s up with a text from Rapheal. 

_ From Rafa: Are you alright? _

_ To Rafa: id say yes but theres not much of a point in lying is there? Ask Ragnor after patrol _

_ From Rafa: Very well. _

He gives up on research and just gets dressed. Mangnus doesn't even have the energy to pick anything too extravagant. Just his armor under a tight black shirt, black jeans with a bedazzled belt, and his favorite pair of boots. And of course, his usual assortment of rings.

Magnus might be the best dressed Shadowhunter around, but he’s still very much a Shadowhunter. All of the rings on his right hand are infused with adamaz, and the ones on his left are a mix of iron and silver, in case he gets into a fistfight with a fairie or werewolf. One of his necklaces can transform into a garrote. 

His weapons have their own rack in his large closet. Because it's a routine patrol night and not a mission, they'll just run through the same several blocks a few times and kill any demons, maybe knock out a few muggers while glamored. Not technically against the rules, but not something they'll include in the nights report. 

Because of that, and because of his post patrol plans, Magnus grabs only his collapsible staff and a few smaller knives, forgoing only the normal seraph blade. Cat is a dual wielder and always has two if he needs one for some odd reason. 

"Magnus Bane, early for patrol? I never thought I'd see the day!"

He cant help the smile as he turns to find Simon walking toward him.

“Don't get used to it,” Magnus warns and Simon laughs.

\---

The next morning, Magnus’ alarm goes off at an ungodly time and he rethinks the whole “making friends with Alec” thing. Ragnor had broken the news to the others over drinks at a quiet mundane bar, and Magnus had taken full advantage of the setting, getting wasted. 

He’d stumbled into his room at three in the morning and collapsed still dressed, only bothering to strip off his weapons belt and shoes. 

“Turn that thing off.” Rapheal orders from the other side of the bed. Magnus blinks wearily at the lump of blankets. He hadn't realized his parabatai had joined him for the night.

After turning his alarm off Magnus stumbles to his bathroom, which is well stocked with hangover recovery remedies. He chases an advil with a shot of a bright green potion from Izzy. Then he showers and scrubs last night’s makeup from his face. 

An hour later he emerges feeling much better to find Rapheal still snuggled up in his bed and half awake. 

“What in Raziel’s name are you doing up at-” Rapheal squints at the clock, “Eight in the morning? This has got to be a record.”

“I’m going to hang out at Izzy’s, same as every Thursday and most nights we have off.” Magnus slides open his closet door and examines his shirt collection. Red or blue? Or the new green one?

“Yes. but you normally leave for her house near noon. Does this have something to do with the twin?”

Magnus pulls a loose pair of black dress pants of their hanger. “Alexander? Yes actually. What do you think of this shirt and that eyeshadow I bought last week?”

“I couldn't care less Magnus, you know that. Don't you think we have bigger things to worry about than getting this warlock to like you?”

Pulling on the shimmery red and gold shirt, Magnus fakes nonchalance. “What bigger problems? If it’s your wardrobe, I agree. Your really should come shopping with us. We could even bring Simon! It’s so funny seeing him moon over Iz.”

“Dios Magnus. Im talking about Lorenzo, and the fact that he's coming here. In nine days, you're going to have to face the man that almost destroyed you. Can you honestly say you’re ready for that?”

“It was eight years ago, not yesterday. I'm fine Rapheal. Maybe I was a bit freaked at first, but I’ll get over it. It was eight years ago.” Magnus repeats. 

“And Camille was seven years ago, yet you still don’t date, and if she walked into the Institute next Saturday you would certainly not be alright.”

“Are you seriously comparing what Lorenzo said to me and how she treated me. Camille broke me!” realizing how loud he’d gotten, Magnus lowers his voice. “All he did was-”

“Don't be ridiculous, he broke you just as much as the she devil, albeit in a different way. Quit trying to downplay this!”

Magnus takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself before one of them says something they’ll both regret later. They may bicker a lot, but the pair rarely fought. When they did, it was never good. “Okay, maybe he hurt me a lot, and damaged me and my ability to really trust people, but ive mostly moved past that and him. Honestly, I haven't thought of him in years and having him around will be awkward at best and awful at worst. But like I told Ragnor, there’s not much I can do about that. So please, just drop it.”

“Fine.”

Rapheal leaves to let Magnus do his makeup and hair, not even bothering with his usual spiel about how being BFFs with the High Warlock of Brooklyn was a bad idea that would end horribly. 

Today, Magnus has decided to ditch his normal, darker color scheme, going with light and open, inviting, The loose shirt, red eyeliner, and a poofier hairdo that leaves a few low strands brushing his forehead. 

He arrives at Izzy's door at 8:45 with a tray of coffee and a box of donuts. Since the High Warlock tends to spend Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday nights at her club, Pandemonium, she shouldn't be up yet. But thanks to her, Magnus knows that Alec never goes to any club, even the one owned by his sister, and was very much a morning person.

He only has to wait seconds after knocking before the door is swinging open, revealing Alec.

“Izzy is not awake yet, come back later. Or not.” the growl in his voice sends a shiver down Magnus’ spine. 

“I know she isn't up yet.” Magnus holds up his gifts, surprised at how easy a smile comes to his face. “I brought breakfast.” 

Alec narrows his eyes. Just calling them  _ hazel  _ downplays their beauty. They are a mixture of brown and blue mainly, but with green and gold tones at times. Like a kaleidoscope, all the shades mixed together and ever changing. It’s mesmerizing.

After several seconds of glaring/smiling Alec yields to the Shadowhunter. He doesn't say  _ come in  _ but he does sigh and turn back into the loft, leaving the door open. 

The warlock had obviously not been expecting Magnus or anyone to show up, because he’s wearing a very old, ratty grey shirt and threadbare sweatpants. But he somehow still looks hot, even with the messy bed head. An urge hits Magnus, to go over and run his fingers through the black mess of curls and see if they’re as soft as they look. He tamps it down, because if he did, Alec would probably kill him. At the very least, Magnnus would likely lose an arm.

Instead he carries the tray of coffee and cardboard box to the kitchen. Izzy’s  mocaccino, thesugary concoction that he had decided on today, and of course, “Plain, black coffee for you.” Magnus hands the cup to Alec, who sets it down on the table instead of drinking. “Honesty I have no idea how you drink that. My parabatai drinks his that way, it’s horrid. I have a theory that he doesn't like it that much either but drinks it only so I can't steal it from him. “

“How do you know my coffee order?” his tone is flat and cold, as usual.

“I asked Izzy. She also told me,” he flips open the box and pulls out a pastry “that you like apple fritters. I got three, because I’ve never had one myself and wanted to try.”

Alec doesn't look impressed. “What? It's not poisoned, look.” Magnus takes a bite of the fritter and has t bite back a moan. He’d bought them fresh and it was still slightly warm. Angel, it was delicious!

“Why are you here?”

“Because I’m not trying to date your sister.” Magnus says. “I realize what this must look like, but I’m not. Izzy and I are just friends and I have no intention of losing that friendship. I promise, I’m not here to hurt her in any way, you don't have to be so...hostile towards me.”

Alec doesn't look convinced. But he does eat the fritters and the take the coffee. So Magnus counts it as a win. 

The only win of the day. Izzy eventually does wake up, and magically reheat her coffee. 

They put on music and paint each other’s toenails in the living room while Alec sets up at the kitchen table. It’s the most organized mess Magnus has ever seen, an open laptop, two notebooks, a thousand loose sheets of paper and photographs, and several old books. He still looks up every once in awhile to glare at Magnus though.

“Don't mind him,” Izzy tells him. “He’s in the middle of some big research project, but he won’t tell me the details.” She returns to adding the little silver dots to Magnus’ big toe, which was now midnight blue.

Magnus sips his coffee, lowering his voice so that Alec wouldn't be able to hear him. “I actually had something I needed to talk to you about. All of my other friends are biased when it comes to him. I need someone who didn't know me back then.” 

“Ohh boy problems,” Izzy grins. “So much for-’

“ _ Not  _ like that, Izzy, jeez.” Magnus takes a deep breath.

“When I was fourteen, I entered the Shadowhunter Academy like most kids my age. But I wasn't… the most popular kid there. My family is kinda infamous. My mother committed suiside when I was very young, which is a very taboo thing in our culture, and is seen as weak. Taking the easy way out. And my father. Well, there’s a reason I go by my mom’s maiden name. The other kids knew about my family history from their parents, and made my life hell.

Cat and Ragnor tried to help best they could, but they were in the upper classes and hardly saw me. It started small, names calling, stealing my stuff, tripping me. It was mostly a group of five other boys. But everyone else knew what was going on and just watched. It progressed to roughing me up a bit in practice and taunts and threats. Once, someone drugged my water. I was sick for three days, throwing up and running a fever. 

It was terrible, but I lived. Mostly because of a single person.” Magnus stares as his hands, lost in memories. “Lorenzo Rey. He was fifteen, a year older than everyone else in our year because his parents held him back a year. His body had not reacted well to getting his first rune, which made him another popular target for bullies. We were roommates and amazing friends. We told each other everything, and got into so much mischief.” He can't help the fond smile.

“We got through the year together. He struggled a lot with hand to hand combat, and I wasn't the best when it came to the academic portion of school. All the names and dates got mixed up. We helped each other. If Rapheal and I hadn't agreed to be parabatai when we were 7 and 8 years old, I think I might have asked him if he wanted to be. We were  _ that  _ close. 

Then, the end of the year arrived. Every May they hold a big ceremony to see off the 18 year olds who are graduating. The whole school comes, and everyone’s parents since schools lets out for break immediately after. Sometimes the Consol or Inquisitor comes. Lorenzo and I had already agreed that we’d send fire messages to each other all the time and try and visit. 

The night before, I forgot to get the assigned reading numbers in one of the classes. I was going to find the teacher and ask her. I was in the hall outside the dining hall when I heard voices. Lorenzo’s, and Alistair’s, the ringleader of the mean boys. I followed the sounds, thinking he was picking on Lorenzo, prepared to jump to his defence as we always did for each other. But then I heard my name…

I’m still not sure on the details. But Lorenzo was there to make some kinda deal with Alistair. He’d help them get into our room and slip something, an animal of something that would scare the crap out of me. Maybe even injure me. In exchange, they’d stop harassing him and if he proved himself worthy, Lorenzo could join Alisaor’s gang.”

“Oh, Magnus.” Izzy sets aside the nail pollish and pulls Magnus into a big hug, which Magnus is all too happy to return. 

“I-I ran away. Lorenzo heard my footsteps and when he realized it was me, called my name. I kept running, all the way to the forest surrounding the Academy. I climbed a tree, found some paper and my stele in my pocket and send a fire message to Holly. She and Ragnor found me the next morning after I’d cried myself to sleep. Took me home. 

I never told anyone except Ragnor, Cat, and Rapheal about everything that happened, only that I didn't want to go back there. When the next year rolled around, Rapheal wouldn't go either. We were trained in New York together.” Magnus wipes away the few tears that had welled up. 

“I never saw him again. But yesterday I found out he’s coming to New York next Saturday and staying for at least six months. And I keep telling everyone I’m fine, it was in the past. And sometimes I feel that way, but I’m also so nervous… About what, I couldn't tell you. But it's there.”

Izzy hugs him again. “Here’s the plan: fuck that guy. Not literally, I mean. But this Saturday, you're coming to Pandemonium, bring your whole gang. Next Thursday, we’ll go shopping, find the perfect outfit. One that says  _ you left literally no mark on me, fuck you tratior.“ _

“I can do that”

\----

Magnus wakes up Sunday morning hungover and naked in a stranger’s bed. Carefully he untangles himself from the sheets of a dark haired girl, going slow both because of his pounding headache and not wanting to wake her up, 

His possessions are scattered all around the bedroom. He carefully pulls on his clothes, slips his stele and nearly dead phone into a back pocket, and writes the girl a stupid flirty note becasue he’s not an ass. No number though. 

Magnus peaks into all of his friend's rooms to make sure they got home safely before drinking a lot of water and that hangover potion and passing out in his own bed. 

÷÷÷

On Tuesday, he takes the next step in his "get Alec to like me" plan. He'd meant to talk to the warlock a bit on Saturday, because he'd been there, probably to keep and eye on Magnus. 

But then he'd gotten drunk and hooked up with a hot girl, and was a bit unclear on whether or not he actually had.

It's late afternoon, nearly time for patrol, when Magnus swings by the Lightwood apartment. Because of Izzy, he knows Alec is a history buff (even of the years he'd lived through), a semi closet romantic, and very gay. 

It hadn't been hard to track down a mundane bookstore and find some reading material that matched those interests. 

The door swings open to reveal, once again, Alec. This time he's in jeans and a shirt for an old rock group who Magnus has never heard of, but makes a note to Google. 

He also has about two days worth if beard. It's oddly attractive. Really works for him. 

"Isabelle is with a client." Alec snaps. Magnus blinks, realizing he'd been staring. "What do you want, Shadowhunter?"

"Um, I'm here for you. I mean, to give you these." Magnus thrusts forward the two books. One of them on LGBT history and the other a collection of queer poetry through the ages. "Here. Um, I have to go. I have patrol. Many demons to kill. Yeah. Bye." 

He is a grown Shadowhunter, he definitely doesn't run away. 

"It was a strategic retreat," he protests to Izzy later that night on the phone. Apparently her brother had spent the night complaining about her 'weird Shadowhunter friend who shows up at the most random of times and keeps giving me strange stuff.'

"If he had been looking at you like that, you would have retreated as well." Magnus insists. "I had plans to stick around and talk but he just looked so mad."

Magnus sits down on his bed, switching the phone to speakerphone so that he could take off his boots and weapons belt. "Honestly Izzy I don't think he is ever going to like me. I know you said we would get along, and I know it would make all our lives easier if we did, but the way he looks at me...half the time it's like he hates me, the other half like he's expecting me to attack him. Everytime I try and do something nice, he looks at it like it's a trap."

Izzy sighs. “Honestly I don't know what to tell you. He’s not a big fan of new people, or Shadowhunters, but I have to admit that the way he’s acting is crazy even for him. I’m sorry Magnus.” 

“Really it’s fine. I do actually have some good news though. About Lozenzo.”

“Did he get eaten by a rogue tiger?” Izzy sounds hopeful.

“What? No, sadly. But his arrival date got delayed by paperwork. He’s not going to be here until November. I'll still have to face him, but not yet.”

“Not as good as him dying, but good enough. Are we postponing our shopping trip then?”

“Yes, but only because I’ve been bribed into covering Lily’s shift in the OPs center so she can go on a date. I'm going to be busy all of Thursday. Sorry.”

On the other end of the phone, there’s movement and sounds like Izzy is talking to someone. Then, “Okay Magnus, that's fine, we’ll just have to go another day. I hate to leave you so suddenly but something just came up. Clary! Just grab the-” she hangs up abruptly. 

“Okaaaay then” Magnus blinks at the  _ CALL ENDED  _ flashing on his phone screen. It’s not uncommon for one of them to have to abruptly hang up. They both have chaotic jobs that require 24/7 commitment. 

Maybe there had been a High Warlock type emergency. Or maybe she tried to cook again…

\----

Working in the OPs center is the third most boring and the least dangerous job of working in an Institute. All you have to do is sit at the monitors and look at the maps for energy spikes. If that happens, or you get a call on one of the phones, you send a Shadowhunter or two on mission duty to check it out. It’s horribly boring, especially since you’re not allowed to play on your phone or anything. It’s normally a job for people on probation or recovering from an injury and not yet cleared for field work. 

Lily currently falls into the second category, but had bribed Magnus with some very nice chocolate and the promise of a favor in exchange for him taking her six hour shift so that she could go on a date with a really hot vampire. According to her. 

Point is, monitor duty is boring as heck. Magnus is so twitchy from not moving for so long, when the next guy shows up to replace him, he practically sprints out the door.

He’s halfway to Izzy’s apartment before he realizes what direction he’s headed. It’s Thursday, but only seven thirty. There’s a possibility that he can catch her before she leaves for her club and talk her into staying home to drink martinis and watch Teen Wolf with him.

Magnus is three blocks away and wishing he’d brought a jacket when he hears the scream. His staff is in his hands and he’s turning towards the noise before he even realizes what he’s doing. 

_ There,  _ an ally across the empty street. Again, Magnus’ training kicks in before he realizes what’s happening, and he’s in front of the alley.

A few feet in, a body on the ground and two shadowy figures looming over it, ripping her to shreds. Literally shadowy. A mated pair of  _ greydam  _ demons, that are made of black mist and shaped like large dogs. Wicked sharp teeth and claws, and the female’s could shoot paralyzing poison up to five feet. The plus side was, they were mostly deaf and blind, relying on scent. 

He only has two seconds between seeing the creatures and their heads snapping up. Right, Shaowhunter’s must smell a lot more tasty than a mundane. The two seconds were enough for him to run through all the information he has on them, and his weapons situation. (His staff, two small knives, a seraph dagger, stele and witchlight, and his adamas rings.)

Then one, probably the male, lunges and Magnus lets the song of battle take over.

Side step, swipe with the staff, demon crashes into wall. Draw a knife, fling it at the female, flip staff back into position, re engage the male. A feint and jab allows him to sink the staff a good three feet into the creatures chest, killing it. But not without leaving his left thigh unguarded. 

He limps over to the victim, but it's way too late to help her. Instead Magnus applies two healing runes, a speed rune, and one that will allow him to see better in the dark. Then he follows the ichor trail left by the female. Because he can't just leave it out here to kill more people, and he wants his blade back. 

He follows the trail through a couple more alleys, up onto a rooftop, into the upper floor of a shipping warehouse. Magnus wrinkles his nose at the smell of rotting flesh. This is probably their den. 

The remaining one is huddled in a corner, licking its wounds. Magnus has never wished he was an archer before, but a long range weapon would definitely be of use here, since he can't get too close or it'll use it's venom. 

In the distance, Magnus hears thunder over the noises of the city. Because tonight is a total disaster.

He ends up using his remaining two knives to kill the thing. But because of the way it's sitting, he can't hit the heart. So Magnus just throws the knives with as much precision as possible and waits for it to bleed out.

There are bodies in various stages of decomposition scattered all around the place. The  _ greydam _ pair must have been nesting here for a while, killing mundanes and dragging the bodies back here. 

Magnus retrieves his knives and is about to call the OPs center to have a clean up crew come in when he sees movement. One of the bodies. A survivor?

"Meow." Not a survivor then, at least of the human variety.

Magnus crouches next to what was once a man, trying to ignore the rotting smell coming from it. "What in the Angel's name are you doing here little fella?"

The little thing just blinks at him. "Meow." Then it starts to nibble on the man's corpse.

Alarmed, Magnus snatches the little brown fluff ball up. "No, no little baby. No eating demon leftovers. Where is your mama?"

The kitten wiggles his way out of Magnus' grip and run over to another body. 

This one has obviously been here for quite a while, because it's pretty much just white bones and a winter parka. A parka on which three more kittens are snuggled up together.

This just keeps getting better and better. 

Magnus can't just leave them here. There's no mother in sight, they're feeding off dead human bodies, it's October meaning it's going to start getting cold soon, and there's a storm quickly approaching. He can hear the thunder, smell the rain. 

But he also can't bring them back to the Institute. And the only person he's really friends with who doesn't live at the Institute as well, is Izzy. 

So, location: Izzy's apartment. Now to get them there. He can't carry four squirming fluff balls that don't want to be held. If only he had a basket or bag of some kind…

An idea but him. 

Magnus strips off his long sleeve navy top, leaving him in a black tank top. Then he undoes his bracelet made of black string (from Raphael's little sister Rosa when she was twelve) and carefully ties the hole where his head goes through shut, along with the sleeves. 

Satisfied, he puts the kittens in his makeshift bag, ignoring their tiny claws protesting bring manhandled, and carefully swings it over his shoulder. Like some kind of good looking, tattooed, twenty two year old Santa wearing combat boots.

Despite his activated speed rune, he's soaked to the bone by the time he arrives at Izzy's building. The doorman gives him a weird look as he runs past and into the finally repaired elevator, but Magnus doesn't care.

Finally standing still, he can feel his passengers squirming in the 'bag'. Several annoyed kitten noises emerge as well.

Magnus doesn't bother knocking, just throws open the door and announces "Izzy, how do you feel about cats? Because I have a sack of them- Oh. Hi."

It's decidedly not Izzy on the couch reading. 

"What the hell are you doing here Bane? Why are you dripping water everywhere?"

"Marw, marw." 

Magnus sets his shirt on the couch and let's the wet kittens out on to the leather. Alec stares at them in confusion, the hard look on his face melting. 

Quickly, Magnus explains what had happened. "I couldn't just leave them in the rain, with no mother around. I was hoping Izzy would still be here, and would be able to help me find permanent homes for them."

Alec carefully puts down his book. His frown has disappeared, his face neutral. 

"There are towels in the guest bathroom, in the cabinet above the toilet. Go get two or three of them." The warlock orders.

Magnus finds them easily. Alec takes two of them and uses them, along with a bit of magic, to dry the kittens off. After a look from Alec, he realizes that the last towel is for him. 

"Izzy's makeup remover and stuff are in master bath." Alec offers, glancing up from one of the two grey babies. He snaps his fingers, and a folded pile of clothes appears on the coffee table. "Here. Just leave your stuff on the floor."

_ Of course,  _ Magnus thinks.  _ I must look terrible right now. _ It's oddly embarrassing.

Izzy's bathroom is giant and gorgeous, which Magnus is very envious of. He quickly removes all of his soaked clothing (no small feat considering how tight his pants are) and pulls on the sweat shirt and...Harry Potter themed pajama bottoms? They're a bit long but they are warm.

He pokes at the mostly healed wound on his leg, resigning himself to a bit of soreness the next few days. But it won't scar, and he's still alive.

Next Magnus wipes away his ruined makeup, and takes off all of his jewelry. He leaves it in a pile on the messy countertop, beside a pink hairdryer. Then he calls the proper authorities at the Institute and tells them about the  _ greydam  _ demons and all the dead mundanes.

Finally he checks his appearance in the mirror. He runs a hand through his hair, which is still half stiff with his styling products. But it looks as good as it's going to get. 

Alec is still on the couch, now trying to get the cats to eat some tuna. They're mostly interested in climbing all over him.

Magnus can't help his grin. "You need some help?"

He expects the warlock to scowl and snap at him. But Alec just sighs. "That would be appreciated."

The Shadowhunter picks up the orange one, who is currently shredding the heck out of the leather sofa. "Izzy might kill me for this. And I'm sorry for just showing up out of the blue with a homemade sack full of kittens." 

"Well, it's a good thing you did." Alec picks up the brown one and flips her over to show off her belly, which is covered in green scales. "And don't worry, I'll fix the couch before my sister gets home."

"Wh-why does the kitten have scales?"

"I have a theory about that. You said you found them in a demon's den, one of them nibbling on a victim?"

"Yeah. Very creepy."

"Well if the mother had been living there, also snacking on the humans, the venom still in their blood could have affected the mom and her babies. They might even have gotten this from ingesting the venom themselves. Thus, scales for this guy. One of the grey ones has teeth longer than he should. I'm just hoping none of them have the ability to spit poison." 

Magnus glances down at the kitten he's holding. It looks slightly less cute now that he knows it probably was raised on a steady diet of rotting human flesh. Still adorable though.

"So I'm guessing we can't just put up posters then? It could end really badly if some mundane were to end up with a demon kitten that shoots paralyzing venom."

"Yeah, no." Alec agrees.

Magnus holds up the orange kitten. "In the meantime we need names for these cuties. How about I name this one, and one of the gray ones, and you can name the other two. You will me Chairman Meow, and you," he plucks up one of the grey kittens off the floor, "Are the Great Catsby." He kisses both of them on the head.

Alec raises a questioning eyebrow, making Magnus feel like he should explain. "I went through a phase when I was younger when I really wanted a cat. I had lists of names, and arguments for why I should get one and everything.

But unfortunately I never got one, since I live in an Institute. We can only have pets that can lice in our rooms, and it would be unfair to the car for it to live in my room. Plus, having a litter box in there...just no."

"So Shadowhunters can't have pets? That's...sad."

"We can if you don't live in an Institute. If you live in Idris, or in a house in the city where you're assigned. There's no rule that says Shadowhunters have to live in their Institute. It's just way easier, free, and safer. My friend Cat's younger sister Madzie has a large fish tank, but since she's at the Academy her sister agreed to take care of them.

Now, what are you naming your half?"

Alec frowns in concentration. It does weird things to Magnus' stomach, that frown and the facial hair and the slightly curly, very unbrushed hair on the top of his head. 

"Aziraphale and Crowley," he decides.

"What?"

"It's from that book, Good Omens," Alec nods to the book he'd been reading when Magnus had barged in. "It's really good, one of my favorites. Plus, they're not really male or female so the names aren't gendered. Kinda."

"Alright then. Whatever you say."

÷÷÷

It is, oddly enough, the kittens that breaks through Alec's cold dislike and distrust of Magnus. Not all at once, but still. 

Four kittens is a lot of work, which Alec can't handle by himself, even with Izzy. They both have lives, jobs. 

So Magnus spends every free moment he has at the apartment. 

He plays with them, feeds them, takes his turn cleaning the litter box, keeps them from doing crazy stuff. He'll bring his tablet and type up reports on the couch while Izzy is with a client and Alec sits in the Most Comfortable Chair Ever and reads old books in several languages, jotting down notes in a five subject notebook that's nearly full. 

Sometimes they'll talk, bonding over the experience of parenting the kittens. 

It's fun. Magnus has a lot of casual friends, and his team and Izzy make up his close friends, but Alec has created his own category somewhere in the middle.

It's weird. It's nice. 

Alec no longer monitors him like he's afraid Magnus will suddenly snap and murder his sister. Magnus mostly stops making a fool of himself in front of the warlock. 

Near the two week mark of their foray into co parenting, Magnus falls asleep on the couch. He wakes up tucked into the guest bedroom, Aziraphale asleep on his chest, with only a vague memory of strong arms carrying him to bed.

His and Izzy's Thursday hang outs still happen of course, just with more kittens involved. The Great Catsby loves snuggling between them and watching movies with them. Azriphale likes trying to get into their alcohol, and stopping him is a feat made much harder by the fact that he occasionally turns into a smoke cloud and just floats away. 

Raising slightly demonic kittens is a very strange experience. But it's new, it's  _ fun _ . 

Three weeks since finding the cats, Magnus runs into Izzy in the elevator or her building, holding two bags of groceries and a thing of wine.

"Fancy meeting you here. Let me help with that." Izzy smiles and lets him take one of the bags she'd been struggling with. "Is Alec cooking lunch?"

Alec had apparently inherited all of the skills in the kitchen in the Lightwood family. Magnus had only eaten a few things prepared by him, but all of it had been amazing.

"Yeah. A friend of ours, well mostly Alec's, is in New York right now. He requested some of Alec's famous lasagna, but then I was sent to get ingredients so they could catch up. Honestly, they've only been apart a few weeks and they text all the time."

"Warlock?"

"Yeah. They go way back, and have worked together on a lot of projects. I think they might have even been together at one point… my brother never tells me anything." She jokes.

His insides twist a bit, which is weird because he normally doesn't have a problem with elevators. "Huh, well that's fun. Can't wait meet him." It's a lie. Magnus just isn't sure  _ why. _

Alec is at the kitchen table with another man when they walk in. Both of them stand as the door opens. 

The friend is taller than Magnus, with golden curls and no warlock Mark in sight. His eyes widen a bit when he sees Magnus, probably surprised to see a Shadowhunter in his friends' home.

Dumping his armload on the table, Magnus extends a hand. "Hey, I'm Magnus Bane. I'm a friend of Izzy's. And maybe Alec's too. He refuses to say."

The man tentatively takes the offered hand.

"Nice to meet you Magnus. I'm Underhill."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is three times the length of a normal chapter, and it wasn't supposed to be. I probably won't update next week just to give myself a breather. Disclaimer: I don't live in the city, don't wear makeup, haven't raised a kitten in years, and don't find guys at all attractive. I am not at all qualified to write this story guys.
> 
> Yes, Underhill and Alec were probably shortly a thing in the past. They aren't anymore. Relax.
> 
> (Also Magnus with the cats? Me when I wanted a hamster. I truly believe little me would have been a good lawyer)
> 
> my Tumblr (I hope that link works)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter is complete

"So this was your plan? Just run off, leave me to care for the children by myself, without a word? How could you Alexander?" Magnus gasps, leaning against the wall. "Is there another woman? You bastard, I loved you!"

Alec glances up from the clothes he's folding with a confused frown. "What?"

Turning dramatically, Magnus pretends like he's crying. "God, I can't even look at you right now. How long has it been going on? What will I tell the children?"

"Magnus, what on Earth are you going on about? Is this about me moving?"

He can't help the half smile that slips across his face as he turns back to Alec, despite the mix of anger and sadness boiling in his gut.

"Yeah this is about you moving. And you didn't even tell me, I had to find out from Izzy when she offhandedly mentioned on the phone that she hadn't realized how much of your stuff was here until you started moving it. Where exactly are you going?" Magnus manages, somehow, to keep the hurt from his voice.

"Not far." Alec promises. "Actually the new apartment might be a shorter trip from than Institute than here. On the train at least. No idea how far walking."

"I assume you'll be taking our babies with you then, as I can't, and we still haven't found homes for them." That was technically Alec's job, but he didn't seem to be putting much effort into it. Magnus couldn't blame him.

Alec nods, "Yeah, Izzy likes them well enough but while she is an amazing doctor, and great at keeping things from dying, she's not the best at keeping them alive, you know?"

While that sentence didn't really work, Magnus knows what he's talking about.

Izzy had, up until ten years ago, been a very accomplished surgeon at a New York hospital. She was both brilliant and very gifted with healing magic, the perfect doctor. Then she'd taken some time off to switch hospitals (too many people had started asking questions) and been offered the position of High Warlock.

A taxing job, which she couldn't really balance with being a surgeon. But not busy enough for her. Opening Pandemonium had been a nice compromise.

But while she could mend anyone and anything from any injury imaginable, she was admittedly not great with keeping houseplants alive. Magnus would definitely not leave Chairman Meow, the Great Catsby, Azriphale, or Crowley with her long term.

"Anyway, we're having a...housewarming party I guess? Get together? Tonight, if you want to come and inspect the living conditions of "our babies". Clary and Jace are coming, and Izzy of course."

Magnus nods. He's met the leader of the New York vampire clan several times, both in official settings and at Pandemonium. Jace had, somehow, yesterday ago obtained the ability to walk in daylight, causing many to refer to him as a daylighter.

Clarissa Fairchild, Jace's on/off girlfriend, was a Seelie Knight and the stepdaughter of the Seelie King himself. Despite her short stature, she could handle herself very well on a fight. Magnus had seen her in battle, and seen her shut Jace up. Both were admirable qualities.

"Alright then. Wait, who's we?"

"Oh, Izzy didn't mention. I'm not moving into an apartment by myself. Underhill is moving in with me."

÷÷÷

Since the age of fifteen, Magnus had worn his clothes and make-up like armor. The day his heart had been broken he'd applied concealer stolen from Ragnor's mom and covered the bags under his eyes, borrowed the sequined blue shirt Cat's dad had given her that she'd never worn, and walked into the OPs center, head held high.

Long before he'd been able to drown his sorrows in alcohol and the nearest willing lady, he'd painted his nails with little patterns until all he could think about was color and pattern and keeping his hands still.

His friends all know it.

"So, who do we need to kill?"

Magnus clicks his tongue. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about Catarina." He carefully doesn't meet her eyes in the mirror.

The four of them are in his room. Cat and Raphael on the bed, Ragnor sprawled in the green armchair, Magnus at the table where he kept his makeup and jewelry.

"Bullshit." Raphael declares. "You have been in here for two hours now, getting ready for this 'dinner party' "

"Unlike _ some _ people, I take pride in my appearance and spend more than a few seconds getting ready." _ Where did he put that gold chain? _

He doesn't have to turn around to know his friends are exchanging worried and exasperated glances.

"Besides, it's not often I get to go to this kind of thing, and I might as well make the most of it."

They still aren't convinced, but it's not like Magnus is going to explain why he feels the need for armor tonight. It's just a dinner.

_ He _doesn't know why he feels like he needs it. It's just dinner and drinks with one of his closest friends, two friendly acquaintances, and the guy who used to hate him and was now raising kittens with him.

And his boyfriend. Maybe. Probably.

During the short lunch Magnus had shared with him, he'd gotten the feeling that Underhill was about as happy to meet him as Alec had been initially.

Unlike Alec, he had not scowled or been cold to Magnus. He'd been very polite, if a bit distant. Uneasy but not hostile.

It had still been awkward. But tonight Clary and Jace would be there, so maybe that would help ease Underhill's nerves a bit.

Regardless of the reason, Magnus really didn't want to go into this looking anything but his best.

"Magnus, you know you can talk to us about anything." Cat says softly. "We won't judge you, we love you."

The other two mutter objections, but Magnus knows they don't mean them.

"I know Cat. And I promise, if I need to, I'll talk."

÷÷÷

Alec and Underhill's new apartment building is not a run down shack, nor is it Izzy's super expensive penthouse. It's not terrible z it's not amazing. It's just...middle class, family sized. The other doors in their hall are decorated with Halloween stuff, and Magnus can hear children laughing somewhere.

At six o'clock exactly, he knocks on the door labeled with a golden _ 24 _.

Jace is the one who answers it, grinning widely enough to show off his fangs. "Magnus! Good to see you." He tilts his head, "You know tonight isn't like...a formal dinner right?"

Magnus is aware that next to the vampire's jeans and long sleeve shirts he's a tiny bit overdressed.

But the black pants and button up shirt, golden waistcoat, and long, dark purple jacket with golden studs in his ears and chains around his neck were what he needed tonight. That, and the purple and gold smudged around his eyes.

Instead of replying he shrugs and follows Jace into the apartment.

÷÷÷

Dinner establishes four things:

1: Alec and Underhill are not dating. While they do live together, they have separate bedrooms and don't really act like a couple. They're obviously very close friends, but nothing more. (At least yet. But maybe in the future…)

2: Underhill is also a great cook. According to Alec, the warlock made the breaded fish with jalapenos, hush puppies, and fried potatoes all by himself. Of course, that leaves Alec on clean up duty later. (Poor Jace gets to drink blood warmed up on the stove. He says it's better than trying to eat actual food and throwing it up later on.)

3: Underhill and Alec are hiding something. Something to do with Underhill, hallway through the meal, looking suddenly like he's about to be sick and excusing himself to go to the bathroom. Because no one at the table is human, Magnus is positive all of them can hear him coughing and reaching for several minutes. Everyone looks concerned and confused except Alec, who is wearing a perfectly blank face. (He'd be really great at poker, Magnus thinks.)

4: Underhill might be afraid of Magnus. Everytime Magnus speaks, he tenses a bit. He keeps shooting Magnus weird looks but never makes eye contact, and never speaks to him directly.

Maybe he needs a new cologne, because this is the second warlock who just straight up dislikes Magnus for no obvious reason.

Once everyone is full, Izzy brings out a bottle of wine she'd brought. Before they can poor it, Alec kicks everyone out to the living room so he can clean up. Instead of following, Magnus lingers next to the fridge.

"Need some help?" Wide, innocent grin. He definitely has to alterior motives.

Alec accepts the offered help without comment, only a sceptical look.

Magnus manages to keep a casual conversation going, with just enough input from Alec to keep it from feeling completely one sided. The weather, the book Alec is reading right now, some stupid thing Simon did last week. For about ten minutes they chat quietly, washing plates, cups, pans. The pot used to warm up Jace's blood.

As Alec washing the final piece, Magnus makes his move.

"Do I need to change my cologne or something?"

"What?" Whoops. He'd been planning on a better intro to this conversation, even if he hadn't quite know _ what _that intro was. Oh well, he'd always been better at improvising anyway. "You smell fine Magnus. Why would you change your cologne?"

"Because either it's laced with something that makes every Warlock I've met recently hate me, or. Or, I don't know. I _ don't know Alec. _ Why do you and your _ boyfriend _ keep looking at me like I'm some kind of monster!?"

Despite his best efforts to remain calm, Magnus feels his temper rear its ugly head. All the walls he keeps in place normally are crumbling. His voice steadily increases, and he's sure Izzy, Clary, Jace, and Underhill can hear it from the next room.

Worst of all, Alec flinches back.

Feeling like he's been punched in the gut, Magnus drops his voice to a whisper. "Please just...I have to know."

An awful voice in his head whispers an answer of _ why. _A voice, made up of the taunts of so many kids, Camille's sneer, the look adults used to give him, all of them just waiting for him to snap.

Alec frowns, nods. Says in a low voice, "I think I owe you an explanation, Magnus Edom."

÷÷÷

The walls of Alec's room are painted a dark blue. In one corner, two tall shelves look ready to buckle under the weight of all of the books. The place is obviously not very moved into yet, boxes stacked up next to the bed and all over the floor.

There's a sturdy wood chair bear the door which Alec waves Magnus into. The warlock sits lightly on the queen sized bed, facing Magnus.

A bit of Magnus' brain snags onto the fact that Alec's hair is rumpled and sticking up from him running his fingers through it. But a majority of his thinking skills have been trapped on a repeat of  _ Edom, he called me Edom, he knows he knows he knows, what does he know how does he know? _

Realizing he's gripping the arms of the chair tight enough to turn his knuckles white, he lets go. Deep breath in, out. Just like Ragnor taught him. 

"Twenty years ago, Underhill and I took a job for a prominent Shadowhunter family in Alicante. The woman who hired us I'd taught at the Academy and had fond memories of, and I was a lot of money. I brought along another warlock who was apprenticing with me at the time." Alec smiles a bit, fondly.

"His name was Max. Izzy had met him a few months before, at a party of hers. His eyes changed color with his mood, and we thought he might be our half brother. The job, even shared between the three of us, was draining. We were all tired by the end, but we refused her offer of staying the night. We would have portaled straight home, but Max had heard of a nearby lake that was said to have been carved by a warlock long ago and if you drank the waters, you would have visioned of the future. 

"Underhill and I were tired but decided to indulge him anyway. It was nearly dark at the time, so we didn't see him until it was too late. Even now I'm not sure how he snuck up on us."

Dread lashes in Magnus stomach. He knows this story, knows what happens next. It at least, he knows the version he's been told a thousand times. But that can't be the true story, because Alec is sitting here and in the one children used to taunt him with, there were no survivors. 

"When I woke up, I was in chains in the dark. Not total dark, there was a lightbulb on the stairway that stayed lit, and it was bright enough that I could make out the inscriptions in the chains, blocking me from using magic. I could see Max in a cage and Underhill chained to the opposite wall. I'm not sure how long I was awake before I heard footsteps."

The warlock clenches his jaw. "Down the stairs came a male Shadowhunter. I could tell from his eyes that there wasn't much human or angel left in him though. Just madness, and the demon whispering into his ear. While I didn't recognize him I did know the demon.

Morgenstern is a demon I've run into a number of times. He's always been fascinated with Downworlders, for whatever reason. He's infamous for his experiments, most notably the one that gave Jace the ability to walk in sunlight."

Magnus had always wondered what exactly had happened to the vampire to make him into a daylighter. Demonic experiments had never crossed his mind as a possible solution.

"Jace and I were friends before he was a daylighter, and when he went missing I searched for him. When I found Morgenstern, I bound and vanished him. Even now he cannot appear on this plane of existence without my blessing. But he can create a...ghost of himself in a way. This ghost found a Shadowhunter already broken by grief and madness, whispered in his ear.

"His goal was to torture a blessing out of me, whether through me it my friends. We were there for two weeks. Max died only days into our captivity, and Underhill-" his voice falters. "We didn't realize at first. But later, his wounds healed too slow. He coughed up blood and threw up so much of what he ate, got random nose bleeds. A curse was laid on him, the only reason he's lived this long is that Valentine was not at full strength. Because of Asmodeus Edom, your father-"

"No." Magnus interrupts. "He is not my father. Do not refer to him as such. I have lived my entire life with the shadow of what he did, and my mother's suicide as a result of it, hanging over my head."

Alec doesn't need to finish the rest of the story. How, for some reason, something had gone wrong. Their neighbors, the Fell's had seen the flash of light and felt the ground shake. They'd found Asmodeus in the basement, face down and dead, eyes burnt out. They'd taken his shocked wife and three year old son in while the officials conducted their investigation.

Magnus' mother had slit her wrists in the bathtub days later, leaving him an orphan. But Ragnor's family had taken him in, had always tried to shield him from his father's dark legacy. 

"I'm sorry," Alec apologies. "I knew he had a child and wife but I never really thought about how the whole thing would affect them."

Magnus fiddles with his bracelets. "Does Izzy know?"

"She knows about Morgenstern and yo- Asmodeus. About my scars and how Max died. No one knows about Underhill's curse. I'm guessing she doesn't know about your...family history."

He lets out a shaky breath. "No. When I was younger I experienced a lot of bullying over it. When I was fifteen, a young woman named Camille Belcourt transferred to the New York Institute to begin field work. She was... beautiful. And cold.

"And two years older than me. I didn't care, but she advised me to keep our relationship from my friends. Just for a bit, she promised. They wouldn't approve. She was my first kiss, my first... everything. I loved her. After three months I told her so, said I wanted to stop hiding our relationship because what we had was real and surly everyone could see it."

He stares at his hands, not wanting to look Alec in is eyes. "She laughed in my face. Both at my declaration of love and wanting to be with her openly. To her, I was nothing but a plaything. She told me I couldn't love her, because I was a monster just like my father. And that no one would ever want to be with me because everyone knew it. And perhaps she was right…"

"Magnus, no." A large, warm hand gently touches his chin, lifting it so Magnus has no choice but to meet Alec's hazel eyes. They're beautiful and warm, filled with an ancient kind of sadness. But no pity.

"You are  _ nothing  _ like him. I'm so sorry for reacting the way I first did. You look like him enough that I freaked. But, Lillith Magnus you're so  _ good _ . I knew it the night you brought four soaking wet, hungry kittens to me because you refused to just leave them. No, the thought of leaving them never even crossed your mind. You're so sweet, and considerate, amazing. So capable of love and being loved in return. You're nothing like him." Alec repeats. 

There's only inches between them now, and Alec's hand is still on his chin. It would be so easy to just…

_ No.  _ What is he thinking?

Magnus clears his throat, breaking the moment. (What moment. There was no moment. Whatever.) Alec pulls back. 

"Thank you. For trusting me, both with that story and in general. And for... everything. I should, I should go. Thanks for dinner it was great. I'll just show myself out." He stands, nearly slamming into Alec. 

He's probably being rude, but he really needs to move. Needs to get out of here, far away from Alec and his fluffy hair and gorgeous eyes and beautiful mind. And his lips, which look. Well, they're chapped and bitten at, but they still look so  _ kissable _ . 

Why did he wear a jacket? Magnus wants to tear it off, he feels so hot. 

"Oh. Do you want me to get you a portal?"

"No, I'm good. I'm great. Thanks again." Magnus is already at the bedroom door.

He hesitates for a beat in the hallway, because Alec had opened a portal for them from the kitchen, so he doesn't know where to go. But one side is a dead end and he can hear Izzy's laugh from the other side. 

He follows is into the living room, almost running at this point. "Bye, thanks for dinner it was great to see you all." Then he's at the door, into the hall, down the stairs. 

Magnus is two blocks away before he stops to lean against a wall.

He finds Alec attractive. Not just in a  _ he's aesthetically pleasing, also I'm not gay but I'm also not blind  _ way. In a  _ he's super hot but also ridiculously cute especially with kittens and I want to mash my mouth against his.  _ And _ a also, now that I think about it I would love to be his little spoon he looks so comfy, I want to curl up on the couch next to him and watch him laugh forever and ever  _ way.

He has a  _ crush  _ on Alec Lightwood. 

The brother of one of his best friends, a warlock, a  _ guy. _

Shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you think? I loved all the theories, some of you got really close. Sorry if I skipped answering some of the comments, of I did it's because I couldn't figure out a way to answer without spoiling this


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is really short because I completely lost track of time and thought I still had a week to write it, so this was written in two days. 
> 
> Another thing. I am not bisexual. I have known I'm gay since sixth grade, and upon realizing it, just kind of shrugged and went back to my book. My experiences and Magnus'are vastly different, so I'm not sure how realistic and correctly handled this is. If you have any suggestions for making it better, or things you would like to see in the future, please leave a comment. Thank you

Magnus takes a deep breath and looks around his room. "You are probably wondering why I've gathered you all here today."

Only Simon looks at all intrigued. Cat looks a bit worried, Raphael and Ragnor bored. They're all dressed in their gear, as they just got back from a particularly boring mission involving a tip off from a werewolf that turned out to be a raccoon, not a demon. 

It's been three days since his realization. Three days of feeling off kilter, of restless sleep and nervous energy building up inside him. 

"What is it Magnus?" Cat asks kindly, when it's clear no one else is going to say anything. 

"I have...a tiny bit of a problem. An announcement? Honestly I have no idea what to refer to this as."

"Does this have anything to do with all the weirdnesses I've been getting from the bond?" Raphael asks. He sounds annoyed, but Magnus knows that's just his parabatai's way of showing concern.

"Yes, actually." Again, Magnus breathes in. His stomach is turning in a very unexpected way. "I um. I think I might like guys."

Running scenarios where he told his team about his new found feelings towards Alec had been another thing that had kept him awake these past few days. He'd always had a bit of an overactive imagination, resulting in dozens of different ideas about how this would play out. But none of them were remotely close to what actually happened. 

Ragnor continued to look bored. Simon looked confused. Raphael rolled his eyes. 

Cat said "About time you figured it out."

"What" Magnus blurts. 

Raphael huffs. "Honestly, you're not subtle about it. You check out nearly every guy you see."

"I do not! And if that's true, why did none of you guys bring it up?"

This time, it's Simon's who speaks up. "I just assumed it was a kind of open secret, you being bi. Or pan like me. We all know how most Shadowhunters are about this stuff."

They all did. Magnus had lost count of the amount of times he'd had a snear and homophobic comment thrown his way, especially once he discovered his love of fashion. He'd always brushed it off, content in his knowledge of the fact that it was untrue and that he definitely got laid more than them. But…

"Simon, I am not a bicycle, nor are you a pan."

The young man gives him the same exasperated look he always gets when no one understands his weird references. "No what I meant. Bisexual, like attracted to men and women. And I'm pansexual, which means I'm attracted to all genders. Geez, Shadowhunters don't teach their kids shit, do they?"

"That's a thing? Being into girls and guys?"

"Yeah. Yeah that a pretty common thing. Did you think straight and gay we're the only options?" Simon sounds sad saying it.

A weight Magnus hadn't known was crushing him was lifted. Because he  _ had  _ thought straight and gay we're the only possible options. That it was girls or guys. That he'd either been somehow lying to himself and the whole world about his clear attraction to girls or these feelings for Alec were some weird fluke. 

That he was broken. 

But he wasn't. Apparently, he could like girls and Alec. And other guys, according to Rapheal. (And wasn't that an alarming thought, that he'd secretly been checking out guys for forever, unbeknownst to even him.)

"Bisexual." Magnus tests out the word, how it feels in his mouth. It doesn't feel magically right. He doesn't suddenly understand everything about himself and his feelings. But it's a good step.

"I'll admit, I'm curious as to what sparked this revelation." Ragnor says.

"Oh, I have a giant crush on Alec Lightwood and only realized it when I got the overwhelming urge to smash our faces together."

"Again, that's old news Magnus dear."

÷÷÷

A few days later, armed with donuts, coffee, a new word to describe himself, and still a lot of feelings, Magnus knocks let's himself into Izzy's apartment for their usual Thursday meetup. 

She hugs him hard enough that we nearly spills the coffee. "I thought you might be mad at me, or injured. Maybe both." She explains. 

That was a reasonable assumption. He'd run out without a word from Alec and Underhill's apartment, had ignored her several texts, and not even glanced at the few fire messages she'd sent. He'd also skipped her annual Halloween party since he knew Alec would be there.

"I'm fine, Izzy. I've just...had a lot on my mind this past week. Doing some soul searching, so to speak. I've got some stuff I need to tell you."

They make themselves comfortable on the cushy armchairs on her balcony.

"This place has felt a bit empty without my brother and your cats," She admits. 

Magnus feels a pang of sadness. He also missed his babies, and felt guilty about not being there to help them adjust to their new home, though he was sure Alec would be doing his best to comfort them. 

He really needed to get himself in gear, even if it was only for them.

"Izzy. I have something to tell you."

She doesn't crack any jokes, able to tell from his body language that this isn't really a joking matter.

He tells her the whole story, his father, his childhood, and how Alec had revealed it to him. He leaves out the part about the curse slowly killing her brother's friend, because that isn't his story to tell.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you it's just-"

"That's not something you go around advertising." She says understandingly. "I get it Magnus. Is that why you were acting so weird, and skipped my party?"

"Not... completely. I also, um. Kind of realized ImbisexualandalsohaveahugecrushonAlec."

Despite the speed Magnus blurts the words out, she seems to get the gist of it.

"Alec? Like my Alec? My twin brother Alec?" Magnus nods. "Oh, wow. I-well. Actually I can see it. You have very different personalities, but the right similarities that you two would be great together. I'm surprised I haven't tried to hook you up before."

"Well, there was that but where he hated me on sight, which I understand now. And the bit where I wasn't aware that I'm into guys." 

Izzy nods. "Yeah, that  _ would _ be a problem. So was there a big break down, an  _ oh shit I'm gay  _ freak out."

Magnus pulls his legs up to sit criss cross. "A bit. Not horrible, just a lot of confusion. Bisexual is a word I think I've heard before, but I never knew what it meant. I certainly never applied it to myself, but if I think about it, I've had feelings for guys. I've checked them out. But I always convinced myself that it was just me admiring them as a person, or whatever."

The warlock nods sympathetically. "Sexuality is a complex thing, don't stress yourself out about it. But I'm happy you found a label that fits you. But what I really want to know," a mischievous grin spreads across her face "is when and how you're going to make a move on Alec."

Magnus nearly chokes on his donut. "What? Oh no no no, I think you've misread the situation. I have very unrequited feelings for your brother, who barely likes me and definitely would never date me. Also, I have strict rules about, you know,  _ not dating. _ " He reminds her.

"First off, I'm pretty sure Alec likes you more than he likes most people. He actually talks to you willingly. Second, your no dating rule is because you got your heartbroken by a cold, heartless bitch. My brother would never do that, he doesn't have the patience to put up with people." She ticks off. 

All of that is probably true. Magnus sighs, trying to put him emotions into words. "I just… even the thought of asking him out fills me with panic. I want to kiss him, and go farther than that honestly-" 

Izzy wrinkles her nose. "Ew, my brother. I know he's attractive but like...less detail please."

"That wasn't even detailed! Whatever. I want to do stuff with him like I do with women, and I keep catching myself daydreaming about holding his hand and romantic shit, things I have never done and haven't thought about with Camille. 

"I know he would never be like her, treat me the way she did. But I'm panicking about it, because I feel like I'd do it  _ wrong,  _ you know? I'd somehow convince him to give me a chance and blow it. Because I've never really been in a relationship."

Izzy lays a hand over his. "Magnus, I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but you have nothing to worry about. Alec isn't exactly the most experienced Warlock out there. He's always been a bit antisocial and more interested in his work than relationships. Hookups are fine, and pretty frequent, but it's been a while since he really dated. And dating has changed a lot since then. He'll be just as lost as you.

"And that's assuming you ask him out at all. Tons of people have feelings that never go anywhere. If you want to just use crush on him from afar while getting your life together and exploring your sexuality more, that's fine. It's up to you."

Magnus feels tears prick in the corners of his eyes. "Thanks Izzy. You're the best."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two coming outs in one chapter, and hopefully another one to my best friend of ten years tomorrow *nervous laughter*. Tell me what you thought! It's scientifically proven comments help people write faster!


	6. Chapter 6

****

Nerves shoot through Magnus' body as he raises a hand to knock. Not just because the guy he's currently falling for hard lives here, but because the last time he'd been here, he'd learned that guy and his best friend had a horrible history with Magnus' family.

Eventually he does summon the courage. Alec opens the door a few moments later and the Shadowhunter nearly faints then and there.

Because the other man is sporting ratty sweatpants, a green tank top, and a few days of scruff. He's holding Azriphale in one hand, Crowley in the other. He probably had to use magic to open the door. 

"Magnus! Um, hi."

"Hello...Sorry I kinda dropped off the map. I had some things to, you know. Think about."

"Right. Totally understandable." A beat of silence. "Do you want to come in? The kittens really missed you."

"Yeah. I missed them too." He gets the feeling that they're not just talking about the cats anymore.

÷÷÷

Azri and Crowley eventually get tired of being held and squirm out of his grasp, making a break for the kitchen. Alec tells him that the four of them were adjusting pretty well to their new home, the Great Catsby had been the most negatively affected, but had recently come to enjoy napping the the bedroom that had been converted into a library/study. 

"He's also taken to sleeping in Underhill's room instead of with his siblings for whatever reason. They've really bonded."

After a half hour of playing with the kittens, who are getting a bit too big to be called kittens, Alec disappears into the apothecary to check on a potion he has boiling. Magnus decides to clean the litter box, a duty he'd neglected recently.

It's not as bad as being on Ichor duty but it's pretty damn close. After washing his hands he plops back down on the couch to give Chairman Meow some treats. The kitten has just made himself comfortable for a nap when Underhill comes into the living room.

"Oh, Magnus. Hello." The warlock looks a little startled to see him but not outright terrified or hostile. "I didn't know you were here."

"I haven't been here for long. I apologise for running out Saturday. I didn't have time to compliment your cooking."

"It's fine. Alec said that he told you. About our...shared history, so to speak. I actually wanted to apologise for my behavior towards you. Alec had forewarned me but I still reacted badly, and for that I am sorry. You are a good person, Magnus Bane, I can already tell."

Magnus smiles, a bit touched. "Thanks. That means a lot, considering everything."

÷÷÷

So yes. Magnus might be friends with Underhill now. They talk if they run into each other while Magnus is over and the strange looks are mostly gone. Sometimes the warlock will freeze up a bit if Magnus suddenly enters a room but that's understandable enough.

Magnus and Alec continue to care for their kittens, which sometimes means he'll come over and play with them while talking to Alec for hours. It does not help his crush. 

The crush deepens as he gets to know Alec better. Twice Alec answers the door shirtless, one of those times after he's obviously been working out because he's covered in sweat and a bit out of breath. 

Magnus is a Shadowhunter and thus around very in shape people nearly twenty four seven. Alec is muscular but not at peak physical condition like most Shadowhunters, like Magnus himself. 

Yet Alec's body turns him on like nothing else.

It leaves him feeling dirty sometimes, when he's laying in bed and imagining running his hands down Alec's abbs.

Nearly every trip to the warlock's apartment has at least one guilty look or daydream. Guilt because Alec has no idea, because Magnus is supposed to be his friend. Friends do not fantasize about kissing you and taking you on dates. Or  _ feeding him take out and laughing as sauce drips down his face, Magnus leans in and licks -No! _

A week of guilty looks and dirty thoughts pass, and then he's too busy panicking to be horny or romantic. 

Because his Alec crisis had pushed his impending Lorenzo crisis to the back burner, and Magnus had stopped counting down the days in dread. Had lost track of the days.

Meaning he now had less than twenty four hours to find an outfit that screamed  _ I don't even remember you anymore, you were so inconsequential to me,  _ and _ I am a completely different person now, you wouldn't even recognize me,  _ and also  _ Don't talk to me, you are less than the non-existent dirt on my shoes.  _

Izzy had volunteered to foot the bill and also help him find the outfit, because she was the most awesome friend in the history of the world, and also did not have a crap salary. She'd wanted to drag her twin along, but Magnus had objected, knowing Alec's presence would just distract him. 

"I'm just...not feeling any of this, you know?" Magnus frowns at vest patterns in front of him. 

Izzy nods. "Yeah, me neither." Her eyes light up all of a sudden, and she grabs his arm.

" _ Magnus.  _ You remember that costume party Jace's second in command threw last year? The steampunk jacket I wore? I magically taylor it to fit you, with black jeans and those white combat boots you bought on a whim and never used?"

"The ones with the heal? It's too unsettling to hunt in, and they don't match anything but a few out my hunting outfits. They're probably still in the box." 

"Yeah, but switch out the laces with green ones to match the jacket."

Now Magnus is beginning to feel inspired. "Do you think I could get me hands on temporary hair spray dye the same color green? The kind that comes out after one wash?" He closes his eyes and envisions his hair, spiked up into a mohawk. "I've been meaning to buzz the sides of my hair off again."

Izzy nods empathically. "Magnus my dear, anything is possible with magic."

÷÷÷

Because Izzy is truly going above and beyond today, after grabbing a pair of new jeans that will work with the planned outfit, they get their nails done. She wants to get massages too, but last time they tried, that hadn't worked out very well.

That night, Magnus stands in his tiny bathroom and shaves the sides of his head, leaving the hair there short and smooth. Then he stares at himself in the mirror, trying to decide what to do next.

He doesn't have any patrol tonight, and it's far too early to go to bed. A few weeks ago, this would be his cue to pull on his tightest clothes and head to Pandemonium.

But somehow his normal routine of dance, drink, pick up a girl seems… empty. Useless. Why would he do that he could… 

When he could go to Alec's. Sit on their old couch and snuggle with kittens and listen to Alec talk about the book he was currently reading. 

Magnus is pulling on his shoes and reaching for the door knob before he can talk himself out of it.

÷÷÷

"You know, I'm starting to think I should just give you a key of your own," Alec comments when he opens the door. 

Magnus frowns. "Oh, sorry. I should have-"

Alec is already shaking his head. "No, no. Come on in. You're always welcome here, Magnus."

This is everything he needs right now. The couch is soft, there's music playing in the background, and Chairman Meow jumps into his hands immediately, demanding to be pet. 

"You cut your hair," Alec notes, and something inside of him gushes because  _ Alec noticed.  _ "It looks good."

_ Alec thinks it looks good. _ Raziel, he's pathetic. But he can't help the way hhx heart skips a beat at the compliment.

"Thanks." He searches for a conversation topic, trying not to get distracted by the way Alec's toes are almost touching his, the way they're sitting on either side of the couch, facing each other. "What are you reading?"

"A biography of Alexander Hamilton. He was one of the founding fathers of the United States." Alec says. "It's pretty interesting. A guy named Lin Manuel Miranda read it and wrote a musical about it,  _ Hamilton. _ "

Magnus raises an eyebrow. "A musical about...a stuffy old dude?"

The Warlock laughs, not a cruel sound, but one of amusement. Then explains how the guys life was actually pretty interesting, except for the part where he cheated on his wife…

Magnus can feel himself relaxing with every word, distracted from the thoughts of tomorrow by Alec's calming voice.

÷÷÷

All the active duty Shadowhunters in the Institute had been assigned to group A, B, or C and told to meet in the central OPs room at a specific time, where they're special guest from Idris would speak to them.

His name hadn't been kept a secret, but it meant nothing to anyone but Magnus. 

Everyone else in the Institute just knew that for the next couple months they would be the testing ground for Lorenzo Rey and his security updates he thought would make Shadowhunting easier and more efficient.

To them it was just a mildly interesting break in their terribly routine lives. To Magnus it was a groundbreaking moment, confronting the man that had once been a boy that was peace and safety to him.

A boy who had not broken him, but had put a crack in his confidence and self worth, a crack that Camille had slithered through and used to actually break him. 

No big deal.

Magnus and his team pull the early kitchen shift then head directly to the OPs center. On the platform Catarina's mother, Melody, stands next to  _ him. _

From what he can see around all the other Shadowhunters gathered, Lorenzo doesn't look all that different.

Taller, sporting a bit of a goatee, long hair tied back. Semi formal clothes, no apparent weapons (which doesn't mean anything for a Shadowhunter), eunes peeking out from his collar, and one on the back of his hand. 

Once the room fills up, Melody here everyone's attention and introduces their guest. 

"Your team leaders were all instructed to brief you on this, but I'll tell you again. This is Lorenzo Rey. He will be staying here for the next six months while we serve as a testing ground for new technology he's come up with that will hopefully have lives, ours and those of Mundanes." She steps back and gestures Lorenzo forward, as to say  _ the stage is all yours _ .

The man steps forward with a smile. "Thank you for having me. What Mrs Loss said was mostly correct. Except for the part where I came up with the technology. The tech has always been there, we've just never taken advantage of it.

"This," he holds up what looks like a watch. "Is the main piece behind my project. It is similar to the Smart Watches owned by mundanes and used for everything from tracking through footsteps to ordering things online to watching movies. 

"I took the tech and adapted it to suit our purposes. My plan is for every active duty Shadowhunter to be given one of these. It contains a tracker, for if you're injured and unable to call for backup and your allies do not have time to find a personal object to track you with using a rune. 

"The tracker can be turned on and off, to give you privacy if wanted. There is also an emergency response button that will send your location to any other ShadowWatch within three miles of you, and to the nearest Institute. 

"You can message other ShadowWatches and communicate directly with your headquarters and teammates, with options of speech to text or just typing it. You can take pictures or videos for logging field work that can then be transferred directly to your reports. 

"The watch can also access the Clave's files, so you no longer have to wait until you get back to the Institute to run a name through a background check, or a facial recognition program. It requires a fingerprint or vocal password to unlock. Each person's watch will initially be programmed to open only to its owners print and voice, but others can be added."

Despite himself, Magnus is impressed. All of what he had described definitely sounded useful.

Really, he shouldn't be surprised. Lorenzo had always been smart. Cunning and in the end, backstabbing, but still a genius. And never the most enthusiastic about fight training. 

Lost in thought of a younger Lorenzo, Magnus misses the last part of the older's speech, tuning back in just in time to hear, "-at a time, Mrs Loss calling out team leaders for me. Meeting room 2, if you would."

The first team called is one of the older groups, and Lorenzo leaves with them, so Magnus relaxes a bit.

His own group stands in loose formation around him, like bodyguards. He finds it a bit ridiculous, but it's also comforting. 

Maia and Lily make their way through the crowd and over to them, the later ignoring all of them in favor of talking with Raphael.

She's had a crush on him since they were all teenagers, but anytime Magnus brings it up, his parabatai acts discussed and storms off. She's never made a move, other than staring longingly at him for hours. Their friendship is strange and unwavering.

The other woman just rolls her eyes and addresses all of them. "So, what did you think of the whole thing? I was a bit sceptical at first but it's actually not a horrible idea."

"I'm a bit worried about the pushback from the older generations. You know how difficult they can be about change." Catarina puts in, Ragnor nodding.

"I'm honestly surprised he got permission to do this."

Everyone nods in agreement to that. Magnus forgot sometimes in the little bubble of New York, how awful the Shadowhunters elsewhere would be. About his father, the way he dressed. How much worse would it be if he was open about his attraction to men, to Alec?

Magnus jumps when Raphael lays a hand on his shoulder and asks in a low voice, "Are you…?" 

He doesn't finish. He doesn't have to. "I'm okay," he reassures his parabatai. Raphael probably felt the growing panic. "Just...on edge."

Lily compliments his coat, but thankfully doesn't question why he's so dressed up for, what is to her, a day not very different than any other.

Eventually, Ragnor's name is called and they make their way to meeting room 2.

The long table is set up with eight chairs on either side, on the table in front of each of them is a small white box. Lorenzo stands at the head of the table, the screen above him running information about the ShadowWatch.

Lorenzo gestures to the table "Have a seat," he's still smiling, but it's dimmed a bit. He looks off balance, somehow. Alarmed. His eyes lock onto Magnus the second they walk in.

So he's read the list. He knows Magnus is here. But he probably won't make a scene. Probably.

They do sit, and open the little white boxes. Inside are their watches. Lorenzo stiffly walks them through programming them to their specific identities, setting the fingerprint unlock, connecting to the Clave database with their proper clearance levels. The whole time he's casting not so subtle glances towards Magnus.

But it's fine. Everything is fine.

It doesn't take long to get everything all set up. To test the messaging system, Lorenzo shares with them all a file that is basically the owner's manual. Simon doesn't get it, so Lorenzo spends ten minutes trying to figure out why and fixing it. 

He's remarkably patient, Magnus notes. Which matches with all the memories Magnus has of Lorenzo trying to explain history to him, quizzing him for upcoming tests. Always patient. 

The whole time, he never says a direct word to Magnus.

When they're finally done, Magnus and his friends stand to leave. He isn't two steps towards the door when a hand catches his arm. 

He turns to meet Lorenzo's dark, wide eyes. "Yes?" It's as cold and nonchalant as he can make it.

The other man opens his mouth. Closes it. Opens it again. "Magnus…"

"That is my name." His heart is hammering. "Did you need something, Lorenzo?"

They're roughly the same height now, or would be without the slight heels on Magnus' shoes, and his spiked up hair. 

"I just- I wanted to. That is, would you-" Magnus holds up a perfectly manicured hand, halting his words. 

"I have no interest in hearing anything you have to say, Lorenzo. And I have nothing to say to you. So let's make these next few months and easier on everyone and agree to stay out of each other's way. Capiche?"

Lorenzo nods, obviously reluctant. Before he can get another word out, Magnus spins and walks out, his team following behind.

It takes a long while, but his heart does eventually go back to normal speed.

÷÷÷

The watch takes a while to get used to. Luckily, the band is black so it matches most of his outfits somehow. Sometimes it will vibrate with a message from his team or headquarters and freak him out. 

But the few problems it has, everyone seems to share, and all of them are only going to be solved by time.

So Magnus carefully evades Lorenzo, only cries once, and gets on with his life. Patrol, reports, different shifts, training, watching  _ Wynonna Earp  _ with Izzy (it's their newest obsession). And Alec.

So much Alec. Sometimes the warlock will be visiting his sister when Magnus is there, will come with them on trips and dinners. 

And he's always at his house when Magnus comes over, under the guise of playing with the kittens. Sometimes pouring over old books smd scribbling on notepads. Sometimes he's brewing a potion, or taking inventory of his stuff, or just kicking back on the couch reading a book. 

And despite being a self confessed introvert, he's always happy to talk. About historical events, ones he was alive for and ones he wasn't. About the book he's reading, or the project he's working on. 

Magnus learns a lot about Underhill's curse, the effect it has on him, and what the two of them are doing to slow if while they search desperately for a cure.

Magnus talks in return, telling him funny stories from the field. The early days of Simon's training are featured several times. And everytime, Alec listens. He nods along and asks questions, keeping the story flowing. 

It really isn't helping his crush on Alec. Every day he seems to get kinder, funnier, smarter,  _ hotter. _

The best and the worst part are the dreams. Magnus almost prefers his normal mix of nightmares, of hunts gone wrong and everyone he loves dead because of him, over the heart wrenching dreams of Alec and him kissing on a bridge in Paris, of cuddling and flowers and syrup sweet kisses. 

But the worst ones are the crushingly guilty ones. The times when he wakes up with Alec's name on how tongue and sweat covering his skin, unable to forget the image of Alec naked and straddling him.

He feels so horrible about it, about thinking those things of his friend without permission. Some days, he can't bring himself to meet Alec's eyes. (His beautiful, beautiful eyes.)

The guilt builds for nearly two weeks, finally breaking on a Friday. Why, he has no idea.

Maybe because he'd been called pit to an emergency late night mission, slogging through the sewers on the hunt for demons nest. The creature had taken several mundane children from the beds, and the people above him thought this was where it was hiding. 

They'd found the thing eventually, and all of the children comatose from venom, but alive. Izzy had been called in to heal them, had done it free of charge. Then they'd been turned over to a contact of hers, a werewolf in the police department to return the kids safely home.

And when he'd finally toppled into bed fast asleep, he'd dreamed of running his hands through Alec's hair and kissing his finger tips. 

Maybe it's exhaustion, maybe it the left over guilt from the dream,maybe it's the way their feet brush when they're on the couch again. but he can't help the words that come spilling out.

"I have something to tell you."

Alec pauses what he had been saying because _ oh shit he'd been talking and Magnus had interrupted him. Shit. _

"Yeah?" His voice is soft and concerned and not making this any easier. 

Magnus begins to twist his rings around on his fingers again. "It's just. Um. A little while ago I… realized something. About me. I'm bisexual."

He dares a glance up at Alec, who doesn't seem very surprised, only a bit confused. This is the perfect time to stop talking, but somehow he can't.

"I only realized it myself recently, though apparently everyone else has known I'm attracted to guys got a while. I was in deep denial, without even knowing it. And maybe I could have continued on like that for the rest of my life, believing women were the only ones I'm attracted to.

"But then...then you happened. You showed up and hated me, and I hated that. I wanted you to like me, and I told myself it was because you were Izzy's brother and she wanted us to get along. 

"It wasn't until recently that I figured out that really, I wanted you to like me because I already liked _ you.  _ And then we became friends and it got worse. And I just. I don't want to hide that. I felt so guilty about it, because I know you could never feel that way about m- oomf"

He's imagined kissing Alec a hundred times, in great detail. But this is so much better. 

He'd been thinking of it like kissing a girl, but girls didn't have a half days stubble on their face. Girls didn't have large, warm, slightly callused hands that came up to cup his face gently.

Alec pulls back slightly but Magnus leans forward to meet his lips again, following that warmth. 

He loses track of how long they sit there, how many kisses they exchange. Not enough. 

Then Underhill walks into the living room, jaw falling open. "Um. Okay. I'll just." he gestures back towards the hall and is gone.

Magnus has been caught doing much worse with much less clothes on, but for some reason he's blushing as he meets Alec's eyes. They're both smiling.

Alec clears his throat. "I think it's fairly obvious, but. I like you too, Magnus."

A breathy "yeah," is all Magnus can manage.

"Would you maybe like to go on a date? With me?"

"I would love nothing more, Alexander." 

****  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is a bit late, I only finished it a few minutes ago. Parades and football games are taking up a chunk of my writing time, not to mention homework.
> 
> So how'd you like it? I love hearing feedback and opinions from you guys. My Tumblr is the same as my profile here now, if you want to check that out.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is another short one because writers block. Sorry

**From: Magnus 5:03**

** _So, what exactly should I wear tonight?_ **

**From: Alexander 5:05**

** _We're going to be walking around a bit outside, so warm but comfortable_ **

**From: Magnus 5:08**

** _Alright. You sure you can't tell me anything else about this mystery date?_ **

Taking a deep breath, Magnus tossed his phone on his bed and went back to surveying his wardrobe. He wanted to look good tonight, but not on guard. He wished he had more time than a few hours to find something to wear, but he also wanted to go out with Alec as soon as possible.

The night before, they'd made out a bit more before exchanging numbers and agreeing to a date today, which Alec got to plan this time.  _ This time,  _ implying more than one date was in their future. Assuming Magnus didn't mess this up. 

And the first step to doing that was to pick the perfect outfit. He needed something that would fit the mood tonight. Nothing too suggestive, implying he was only in it to get laid (absolutely not the case, for once), but still made him look stunning. He needed…Izzy.

But the two of them had also agreed to not tell her about the whole thing, for the time being. And that they'd tell her together, or just Alec by himself. 

She had, after all, been his sister long before she was Magnus' friend.

His phone dings with a reply.

** From: Alexander 5:11**

** _No I can't. It's supposed to be a surprise, Magnus. Just let me take care of everything._ **

  
  


**From: Magnus 5:11**

** _If you insist_ **

**From: Alexander 5:12**

** _I absolutely do. I'll see you at seven. _ **

Embarrassingly, Magnus feels himself flush a bit. He's used to people wanting him, romantically and physically, but not to them wanting to take care of him. 

  
  


He forces himself to put the phone down and focus on his clothes again, least he get distracted and text Alec for hours. 

_ Comfortable, but stylish. And warm. Hmm. _

÷÷÷

Alec meets him half a block from the Institute. They'd planned to meet in the steps, but Maia had guard duty and Magnus didn't want her side eye and little grin. Because it was very obvious he was dressed cuter than normal, and Alec had flowers.

The flowers had been a surprise.

Like something out of one of those romance movies Magnus had always despised. They weren't roses, but large purple beauties, with little white specks on the inside of the pedals.

"A vampire friend of mine bred them a couple decades ago," Alec explains when he asks what they are. "Calls them guérison, which just means  _ healing  _ in French. Chewing on the pedals helps with headaches, nausea, vomiting. Makes a great tea too."

He thinks his face might split from his hard he's smiling. Alec brought him  _ flowers.  _

Not just flowers, but useful ones. Magnus has never personally put a lot of stock in the unspoken Shadowhunter ideas about objects that don't serve a purpose not being worth time or effort, but these flowers are still a reflection and adaption of his culture in the best way. 

Beautiful and sentimental, but not useless.

"Thank you, Alexander. I love them." And just because he can, Magnus leans in and up a bit to kiss the warlock on the cheek.

Alec is clearly startled. He clears his throat. "You're welcome. You look nice." 

It had taken him a while to decide on his look for the night. Ripped blue jeans and a blue peacoat, light makeup and hair styled to curl over his forehead. There were fingerless gloves and a wool cap tucked into his pockets.

"Thanks. So, do I get to know where we're going now?"

Alec nods and holds out a hand, which Magnus takes. "Yeah, it's not far from here. Come on."

÷÷÷

Their destination ends up being a mundane outdoor fair, of all places. Alec predicted correctly that Magnus had never been to one.

The flowers are a problem. Magnus can't exactly play games with one hand always occupied. But he's on a date with a Warlock, so they're gone a second after he mentions it. 

"Just back to my place," Alec assures him. "I'll bring them back at the end of the date."

The fair is great. Even if the games are rigged, and he's going to have to double his workout time for the next week to make up for all the junk food Alec insists on paying for.

"Funnel cake is the best thing mundanes ever invented," Magnus declares at on point around a mouthful of friend dough. "Besides cotton candy. How in Raziel's name do you not like cotton candy? It's my new favorite food."

Alec just smiles. "You have powdered sugar on your face."

"Okay, even  _ I  _ cannot be perfect all the time Alexander. I suspect no one has ever looked dignified eating one of these, ever. Now hand me the lemonade."

His date obliges. "Why do you do that? Call me by my full name?"

"I don't know, it just...suits you.  _ Alexander.  _ It sounds powerful and strong, like you."

Alec tilts his head and is quiet for a moment. "We'll see how strong you think I am after this next ride." he says eventually.

The next ride is indeed horrible. They both scream as they spin around faster than Magnus has ever moved before, kept from certain death only by a few buckles and straps.

"Maybe there are some parts of this fair that aren't the best thing ever," Magnus admits once he gets his voice back. His throat is still sore. "Mm, I might need those flower petals sooner than expected."

Alec looks as sick as Magnus feels, but at least he hadn't eaten as much food as the Shadowhunter. "Now you know why I made us wait to do the rides last. And cheer up, these things are a little safer now than when Izzy first dragged me onto one years ago."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Magnus drops down onto the bench beside Alec, resting his head on the warlock's shoulder. Alec wraps a loose arm around him.

They sit for a while and people watch. It's something Magnus has always liked doing, watching Mundanes and wondering about their lives. 

It's not that he doesn't love being a Shadowhunter. He couldn't imagine ever doing anything else, living without it. Not having his team always at his back, Raphael's soul entwined with his own. 

But Magnus does sometimes wish he could be free of his family history, could choose what to do with his days. His always had a tiny, secret dream of an apartment of his own one day, his own pets and a larger closet. He's never shared it with anyone.

But he thinks he could tell Alec. One day.  _ Maybe share it with him, a life together,  _ a voice whispers in the back of his head.

But because this is only their first date, Magnus pushes that thought from his mind. 

They sit there for a while, watching and commenting, guessing people's stories. Alec is an amazing story teller, his voice calm and quiet without putting him to sleep.

Eventually they grow bored of this and exchange a few soft, innocent kisses. The most innocent Magnus has probably ever had.

They don't kiss for long before Alec is pulling away. "I have... something else for you." he breaths. From his pocket, he pulls a folded piece of lined paper, and a silver ring.

"Alexander, great as this date is going, I think you should at least buy me dinner first."

"What? No." Alec shakes his head. "That's not what- Look. I think this date is going great too. And I really like you, even if you do cheat at carnival games-"

" _ Obviously rigged  _ carnival games." Magnus defends himself. "And a few accuracy or strength runes aren't really cheat. More like- using my resources."

"-And I trust you a lot, despite the initial cold shoulder. Which is why I want you to have these. My Warlock Mark is a lot like Izzy's, except it's my hair that changes with my emotions. Max's eyes did the same, which is why we believed we were probably related. It's not the most common Mark. 

This ring is infused with my magic, and will allow you to see through my glamor as long as you are wearing it. Over the years me and Izzy have put exact colors to emotions, and I wrote them on this paper. This isn't a gift I offer lightly, but I- I feel like-"

Magnus' heart is beating so fast that he thinks it might burst from his chest. 

Alec trusts him. Trusts him enough to show him this massively secret and personal thing about him. He'd be  _ vulnerable _ , in a way.

He leans forward and presses his lips to Alec's, trying to convey all that he's feeling. Joy and excitement and honor and things words can't describe. Alec returns the kiss eagerly, pulling away before it can get too heated. They're still in a public place, after all. 

Taking Magnus' hands in his own, Alec slides the ring onto a finger. 

At first glance, Alec's hair is now a bit jarring. Most of it is yellow, bright bright yellow. There are still bits of black mixed in, mixed with small streaks of gold, red, purple, green. But it also seems...right, somehow. 

He lifts s hand and touches the red streak gently. "It's... you're. Beautiful. Thank you, for sharing this with me."

Alec beams. "Thank you for being someone I felt I could share it with."

(Magnus checks the paper later that night in his room. All of the colors are listed are headings, followed by specific shades, samples of that shade, and what emotion it means. The only thing under yellow is: Joy:the brighter the happier.)

(Gold is labeled as trust)

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, how'd you like it? I have the whole list of colors and their meanings written down (have since before I started writing this) and I'm excited to finally be able to use it! If you guys want to see it, I might put it up on my Tumblr. We'll see.
> 
> I can't believe this is almost complete. The next two chapters get plotty and the tenth is an epilogue


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this in a blur of insperation in like, three days last week and have barly glanced at in since, so I don't even have a good reason for the typos, especially since my Saturday parade was cancelled and I had the whole day free

__ ****

Magnus…might go a bit overboard. Even he has to admit it. Going to a store that sold house paint and picking out the colors listed on the paper Alec (his  _ boyfriend)  _ had given him printed on little pieces of paper and using them as flashcards was maybe a bit weird. 

But he'd don't it anyway. Had spent an hour in the isle of a Lowe's where they kept tiny cards with sample colors on them so people could compare then when trying to decide what color they like best. Looking for candy red and seafoam and cider that matched the paper Alec had given him.

He'd put the list on his dresser, next to the vase he'd put the flowers in, the stuffed cat he'd won on their date, and the strip of pictures they'd taken in a weird box that night. Not that the list was really needed anymore. Magnus had memorized it. 

**Reds:**

Blood red: anger

Candy red: love 

Scarlet: lust

Hibiscus: hope

**Oranges: **

Bronze: determination

Cider: exhaustion

**Yellows:**

The brighter the happier

**Greens:**

Emerald:disgust

Seafoam: envy

Basil: jealousy

Shamrock: relief

**Blues:**

Cerulean: sadness

Navy: pride

Indigo: stress

**Purples:**

Mulberry: nervousness

Violet: hatred

**Pinks:**

Magenta: amusement

Strawberry: panic

**Others:**

White: pain or shock

Anchor grey: fear

Gold: trust

Two days later, when they meet up for a second date, Magnus is able to read Alec like a book.

His amusement when Magnus rants about the multiple flaws of the movie they go see, his jealousy as a waitress at the little restaurant they go to afterwards flirts shamelessly with Magnus. 

It's thrilling, this trust Alec has put in him.

Friday, a week since they first kissed, finds them holding hands and wandering through a little art gallery in Brooklyn. Alec had heard about it from Clary, who was unexpectedly a huge fan of mundane art. 

It's quiet, only a few other people milling about, soft music playing from unseen speakers. Until suddenly Magnus' phone begins ringing insistently. 

Regretfully, he pulls his hand from Alec's to check it. Caller ID tells him it's the number for the OPs center of the Institute. All the other people in the gallery are glaring at him. 

"I'm sorry, it's work." He apologises to Alec steps away, answering it. "Magnus Bane here."

"Hi Magnus." He recognizes the voice as belonging to Dorthea Rollins, a newish transfer a little younger than him. She had a very obvious crush on him, and had tried to kiss him once while they were sparring together, before she got the memo that Magnus Bane did not date. "I know you're off duty, and I'm really sorry to bother you. But we just intercepted a disturbance call to the police department. A mundae woman delivering to a place near the Jace Wolf. Your Shadow Watch put you as the nearest to them."

"And you want me to check it out," Magnus guesses, biting back a sigh. 

"Yes please. A munade police officer probably won't be there for a bit, and it's probably just a little pack squabble-"

"But better I check it out than some human cop get in the way and end up dead. Or accidentally turned." Magnus finishes, "Okay. I'm only a few minutes away, I'll call back with an update soon."

He hangs up without another word, just to be dramatic and because he's feeling, as Simon would say, salty. He must have a not pleased expression on his face because Alec looks worried the second he returns.

"What is it?" 

Magnus tells him. "Sorry to ruin our date like this, I'll make it up to you I swear."

"Nonsense. I'll come with you. I'm not defenceless." Alec defends, seeing the look Magnus gives him. 

He wants to argue, but doesn't have the time. "Okay, fine. Just... please. Be careful."

÷÷÷

The Jade Wolf is only five minutes fast walk from the gallery. Once there, Magnus pauses outside the main door, listening. 

A few voices, but not raised. Magnus doesn't have a hearing rune activated, so he can't hear what they're saying. He palms a throwing knife, one of three he has on him, just in case, and opens the door slowly. 

The bell chimes as he does, alerting all the wolves in the restaurant to his presence. They probably smelled him coming anyway. 

There are eleven werewolves in the main area, three of them in their wolf forms, and one of them unconscious.

Most of the faces he recognizes at least, if not by name. Then a blonde dark haired in the back stands up and he grins. "Aline!"

The werewolf smiles as well. "Magnus Bane. Whatever are you doing here?" She spots Alec behind him. "And Izzy's brother? I heard you were in town."

Magnus nods to the young guy on the floor. He looks maybe twenty, but probably younger, and there's a plate broken on the ground next to him. "That, I suspect. What happened?"

Aline waves an arm casually, and all the other wolves relax a bit at her obvious nonchalance about the Shadowhunter in their ranks. "Oh, Zachary? Just a new pup throwing his weight around. He's a bit of a jackass, always talking shit about Lydia and defying orders. Helen put him in his place." 

"Did I hear my name?" A blonde woman comes out of the kitchen area with a broom, probably for the broken plate. 

"Here, let me help," Alec waves a hand and the shattered pieces disappear.

The blonde woman, Helen, blinks in surprise. "Oh wow. Thanks."

Aline laughs. "Hey, you two want to have a seat. It's been a while since we last saw each other, Magnus. It would be nice to catch up."

They grab a table in the back and slightly behind a corner. Helen puts the broom up and comes back with a plate of egg rolls for them. 

"I think some introductions are in order." Aline says. "Helen, this is Magnus, a good friend of Izzy's. And her brother Alec, but I think you two met on Halloween. Magnus, this is Helen. She's new."

The two women smile at each other in a way that is somehow less subtle than their under the table hand holding. Magnus can't help but laugh.

"It's nice to meet you, Helen. And nice work with the kid."

"Yeah, well. Lydia has done a lot for me since I was Turned. I just got tired of him disrespecting her." The wolf says with a smile.

"Admirable as it is, you might want to move him to the back. The mundane police are slow, and a disturbance call from this area is probably not high on their priority lists, but still. Better safe than sorry." Alec points out.

Aline nods. "Good point. Is that why you guys are here? I wasn't aware warlocks monitored their lines as well."

"I got a call from the Institute because I was close, Alec was just with me and tagged along."

"Your backup." Alec nudges him with an elbow and smiles. Magnus can't help but smile back. 

And maybe that's a mistake, because Helen chokes on her eggroll and Aline squeals. "Wait, wait. You two...were you on a  _ date?" _

Magnus bites his lip. He wasn't ashamed of it, of how he felt for Alec. But they weren't exactly advertising it at this point. But Aline had long been a friend, so he nods. "Um, yeah actually."

She grins. "You, Magnus Bane, notorious ladies man, heartbreaker of a thousand young ladies, on a  _ date.  _ With a  _ guy. _ " She points at Alec. "And you, mister introvert, 'I love books more than any person also distrust everyone' are on a date and looking  _ smitten,  _ with a Shadowhunter. A  _ Shadowhunter. _ " 

She repeats it, obviously finding it hard to believe. Magnus couldn't exactly blame her. Interspecies hookups were actually pretty common in the Shadow World, but committed relationships were not. 

It's Alec's turn to smile and take Magnus' hand. "Yeah. Yeah I was."

He melts. Absolutely melts. He can't help it. Big strong Shadowhunter who? Nope, just Magnus, a puddle of feelings on the floor. 

Aline heckles them for several minutes, her girlfriend occasionally jumping in with a sassy comment that makes Magnus like her even more. It's great fun. Aline talks about all the queer spaces he needs to check out, Helen admitting she's also bisexual leading to an in-depth conversation about what that means to her and to other people.

It's great, until Alec's phone rings. 

"We need to start putting these on silent during dates," he jokes, answering it. Magnus sees Izzy's contact photo. "Hey, Izzy, what's-"

White, grey, strawberry pink.

Shock, fear, panic.

He hides it well, probably not even on purpose, his face freezing with a frown. But his hair gives us away. Whatever Izzy's calling about, it isn't good.

"Okay, I. We'll be there in a second." Alec hangs up and stands in a single motion, grabbing his jacket from the back of his seat. "Underhill just had another episode while with Izzy. She can't get him to wake up."

÷÷÷

They portal right into the dining room, where Underhill is lying on the table, eyes closed. Izzy is standing over him. She has her hands pressed to his chest and they're lit up in red light. 

Magnus stumbles slightly, nauseous from the portal, but Alec has no such trouble. He asses the situation then calmly snaps his fingers. 

Iszy steps out of his way easily. She looks a bit panicked, but way calmer than Magnus would probably be. Probably her years working in hospitals. 

Alec prys open his friends mouth and dumps the large vial of bright blue liquid he'd summoned down Underhill's throat. For a moment they all stare at him, unmoving.

All of a sudden, the warlock's eyes snap open and he gasps, bolting up like something from a movie. A zombie rising from the dead.

Underhill grimaces and puts a hand to his head, like it hurts, and blinks at them blankly. "Wha?"

Alec's hair turns completely shamrock. "Thank Lilith. I thought… that was a bad one. The antidote barely worked, and that was three times the normal dose."

"Oh."

They stand there for a moment, quiet, before Izzy finally runs out of patience. "What the hell is going on?"

÷÷÷

"Alright, let me get this straight." Izzy points to Alec. "The reason you didn't like Magnus is that he's the son of Asmodeus Edom, the Shadowhunter who kept you two captive for weeks and who killed Max twenty years ago." 

She swings the finger to Underhill. "And while you were captured, the demon he was allied with placed a slow killing curse on you, which the two of you have quietly been trying to cure, for years, without telling me? But Magnus knows?"

"That… about sums it up, yes." Alec says nervously. Magnus internally disagrees. This seems kind of like the perfect time to say,  _ Oh yeah and the two of us we're together because we were on a date. Not our first date though. We're boyfriends and haven't told you yet. _

Alec sighs. "Look, Izzy, I get that you're mad about me hiding this-"

"Not  _ just  _ that, Alec. I came here to pick up a few of your books and found your best friend looking dead in the kitchen. What happens if you hadn't picked up your phone in time? If he had died because I didn't know how to help? Secrets never end well Alec."

"I know. I'm sorry."

An awkward, heavy silence falls. "So, tell me more about this curse." Izzy requests with an attempt at a smile. "It must be some spellwork, if the two of you combined have barely made a dent in it. I'm guessing this is the large project you've been working on."

That eases the tension a bit. The three warlocks sit down at the table and begin talking about lot of magic stiff Magnus can't follow, so he decides to just make some sandwiches for them all, because he's hungry and Underhill still looks a bit out of it. 

He's been here enough recently that he can find their peanut butter and bread easily, but they only have grape jelly. When Magnus rejoins them at the table, Izzy is throwing out suggestions for breaking the curse, which Underhill and Alec are quickly shooting down. They've tried them all before. 

"I appreciate the help, Isabelle." Underhill begins as Magnus puts the plate down. "But this curse, it's resilient. We've tried so many possible cures, but they slow it down at best."

"Have you tried one of the cure all's?" 

"You know how hard it is to get your hands on one of those. The easiest is the kiss, but unless you've got my true love stashed in your apothecary…" Underhill trails off, the look on his face hopeless. Izzy looks much the same.

But not Alec, whose eyes are suddenly brighter. His hair is tipped with bronze. "I have an idea."

With a wave of his hand, three old books appear on the table. He grabs one and begins to flip through it. Magnus sees Alec's handwriting, lists and paragraphs filling the paper next to hand drawn diagrams of plants and hexagrams. 

About halfway through the second book, he stops and looks up triumphantly. "I've got it. True loves kiss, that's our solution."

"Alec, I was kidding about that. I'm not about to start kissing random people in search of someone that will cure me." Underhill says.

"No, no. Not random people. Have you ever heard of the Red String Of Fate?"

"About invisible strings linking pairs of people who are destined to be together? Yeah, but how does that help?"

"I can up with this spell's theory with that legend in mind, after having my heart thoroughly broken in 1879. I worked on it as a kind of messed up therapy. But it's still  _ et intherium.  _ A theory. The list of ingredients is long and rare, but if I assembled it and it worked…"

"You find Underhill's fated or whatever, they true love kiss, Disney style, and he's cured." Magnus says, astonished. It was not a horrible plan. 

Not only that, but if Magnus was understanding this correctly, Alec was in fact, a genius. He knew from Izzy that a cure all was basically the name. An object or spell that could break any curse, cure any illness, magical or otherwise. The hard thing was finding someone's true love and convincing them it would work, because the kisser had to believe it was possible. And there was no way of knowing how many kisses didn't work because the kisser simply didn't believe it would, even if they  _ were _ the person's true love. 

If Alec had somehow created a spell that could find a person's true love for sure, to prove they were destined to be together, that was huge. 

"That...that could work." Izzy says. Underhill takes the book from Alec and begins reading the three page spell to himself. Tentative hope sits in the air.

"So simple," Alec murmurs to himself. "Why didn't I think of this before?"

Magnus pushes the sandwich plate to him, because there's not much else he can do. "Don't beat yourself up over it Alexander. You did your very best for years, and thanks to your sexy brain we have a plan. So you can relax right now."

His boyfriend gives him a grateful smile, taking Magnus' hand and lifting it to his lips to press a light kiss to the back. "Thanks, babe."

Magnus is so swept up in Alec he forgets the other people in the room until a startled noise escapes Izzy's mouth. 

"What the  _ fuck _ ."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking about making this into a series and doing adding a work that is just bonus scenes that didn't make it into the fic? It wouldn't be updated regularly, just whenever I had inspiration. For example, Izzy reacting to Malec was supposed to be here, but it didn't really fit with the flow of the chapter.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer, I heavily dislike this chapter and how it turned out but I figure you guys have been waiting long enough.

"You know, I'm starting to believe this whole ingredient gathering thing was just a charade to take me on international dates and buy me things," Magnus says, adjusting his new sunglasses

Back home in New York, it is nowhere near sunny enough to need sunglasses or the black and silver sequined tank top he's wearing now. But here, it is.

Admittedly, Magnus does not strictly know where  _ here  _ is, only that there's an ocean in sight and that it appears to be summer. Alec had called him hours ago and told him to dress for warm weather, then portaled them here directly from the steps of the Institute.

"Perhaps," Alec admits, sipping his slushy drink. The red stains his lips, making it look like he's put on lipstick. It's not a bad look on him. "Would you be okay with that?"

Magnus snorts. "Would I be okay with my incredibly hot boyfriend using his incredibly sexy magic powers to take me all over the world for exotic vacations? In what world would I not be 100% on board with that?"

Alec shrugs, not meeting his eyes. "I don't know I just… I'm not really a relationship person, right? I've had several in the past several hundred years, but nowhere near as many as Izzy or other immortals. My work has always been more important. But, once, when I was younger. I was in a relationship with an older warlock who was a lot more powerful than me. He was always doing things for me, treating me really well. It created a peer imbalance that I didn't realize was there. Not until he started to hold stuff over me. I realized how unhealthy it was and broke it off, but I've been really conscious about power and who holds it since."

Mulberry and cerulean and hibiscus. Alec is worried he's over stepping, and a bit sad at the mention of his past lover, which Magnus can't have. He takes Alec's hand in his.

"Hey, I'm fine with this. And I promise, if I ever feel... overpowered, or like you're doing more for me than I am for you or something, I'll tell you. Okay?"

Yellow and shamrock. "Okay."

Magnus nods, his heart full and bursting with affection. "Okay."

÷÷÷

It takes Alec a week to gather everything. He only takes Magnus with him four, three of them dates with a quick detour to grab or buy whatever he needs.

He called Magnus for the fourth not for a romantic night out, but because he needed his extensive weapons knowledge and speak in tounges rune. (Definitely his least favorite trip. He broke his favorite staff, melted a new pair of boots, is never getting that bloodstain out if his shirt, and is pretty sure he still has sand in uncomfortable places.)

Magnus tags along to the final errand simply because they have tickets to a movie soon after. That's how he finds himself sitting on a couch in the Hotel Du Mort half past noon on a Friday, the leader of the local vampire clan laughing so hard he almost falls off his own seat.

Alec is scowling again, even if his hair is bright. "Yes, yes. Me and my boyfriend almost getting eaten by giant snakes is funny to you, we get it."

"It's just- that is do you. Romantic date to gather rare spell ingredients and almost getting  _ eaten _ ." The leader of the New York clan wipes the tears from his eyes. 

"The other dates were plenty romantic," Magnus defends. "And that last one… got a bit embarrassing and life threatening, but I'm a Shadowhunter. Danger is kinda my thing."

" _ Anyway,"  _ Alec says loudly. "If you could give us what we came for, we can be on our way. Jace?"

The final two things Alec needed were Jace's special daylighter blood and a flower from the Seelie lands. Clary had been supposed to meet them here with it but had apparently had to dash off to take care of an emergency. She'd left the flower with Jace instead. 

Magnus watches his boyfriend and the vampire bicker and is reminded, not for the first time, of Raphael and hoshe interacts with his younger brothers. (Not Rosa though. Rosa was precious and always to be protected, even if she hated it.)

He wonders idoly how Alec and Jace met, how long they've known each other. There's still so much he doesn't know about Alec, which makes sense as they've only known each other for a few months.

But he still  _ wants _ to. He wants to know everything about Alec, wants Alec to know everything about him in return. He wants…

Alec's phone begins to ring. Since he's currently got his hands full jabbing Jace with a large syringe, he can't really answer it. "Magnus, can you get that for me? It's Izzy's ringtone,so it might be important."

Izzy was at her place watching Underhill. The Lightwoods and a fee of their friends had set up an alternatingly roster so that the ill warlock was never alone. Izzy had offered to take several shifts, saying she wanted to get to know him better.

"Where is it?"

"My back pocket." Alec says without an expression. But his hair is colored embarrassed. "Shut up."

The last comment is aimed at Jace, who had made another crass comment.

"This is not how I wanted this to happen for the first time," Magnus mutters, reaching into the back pocket of Alec's jeans. He may let his hand linger for a moment longer than necessary. Maybe.

He accepts the call and flicks it to speaker phone. "Hello, darling. You're on speaker."

"We have a small problem." Izzy says calmly. "Underhill had another... episode. I gave him all of that potion you gave me, but it didn't work. At Catarina's invitation, we've moved him to the med bay of the Institute."

Alec, having finished drawing Jace's blood, freezes. "He's where?"

At the same time, Magnus blurts out "Why was Cat with you?"

"They are better suited to holding a person that is basically in a coma than my living room is. I hope you got the last of what you need, because we need it  _ now,  _ Alec. Hurry."

Calmly, Alec removed the needle from Jace's arm and puts his gear in its proper place in the bag he'd brought. He holds the bag of blood in one hand and uses the other to open a portal. "Magnus, grab the flower from the table." 

Magnus does, and they step through the portal together.

÷÷÷

They step out on the steps of the Institute, scaring the crap out of the Shadowhunter on guard duty. 

Alec practically sprints through the door but stops once he's in, not knowing where to go. Magnus grabs his hand and leads him to the med bay. 

The massive room, the floor to ceiling windows built to let in natural light, and the rows of beds and exam tables are all too familiar to Magnus. This is no one's favorite part of the building they call home. 

Catarina is standing just inside the entrance. "We put him in one of the private rooms," she says without preamble. 

"Is this even allowed? Treating a warlock here?" Magnus asks as they hurry to the room Underhill is in.

"You let me handle that Magnus." She says sternly, opening the door. 

Underhill is in the bed, on top of the covers. He's still wearing his shoes. Izzy stands beside him, arms raised, chanting. 

The warlock is pale and still and looks more like a vampire than anything.

Alec wastes no time, waving a hand and causing a small wooden table to appear.

On it is a marble bowl, his notes, and all the ingredients they'd gathered. 

He pours Jace's blood in first, then the ground up bone, a handful of sand, what looks like dried fruit, a vial of purple liquid. Alec then shreds the flower with a flick of his hands and dumps that it as well. 

"Stir this please, clockwise." Alec hands him a wooden spoon. Magnus takes it, grateful to have something to do.

Alec returns a moment later and let's something clenched in his fist go into the bowl. "Is that...his eyelashes?"

"Eyes are the window to the soul," Alec explains, shrugging. "I told you this spell is basically just a bunch of Disney stuff."

"What happens now?"

"Now I drink it, and it hopefully allows me to see the red string on Underhill's finger, and we follow it to his fated true love."

Magnus has many more concerns, such as  _ What happens if the person is too far away? and Once we find this person, how do we convince them to kiss a random unconscious person?  _ but figures that genius as Alec is supposed to be, he's probably thought of everything. 

Maybe not come up with a solution for everything, but thought of it certainly. 

Alec lifts the bowl to his lips and drinks the entire thing, even when his hair goes emerald with disgust. 

"Is it working?" Magnus asks once he sets it down. Izzy has stopped chanting, leaving the room dead silent. Alec looks to the bed, to Underhill and his hands folded on his chest.

Slowly Alec nods. Takes a breath, hair now colored with relief and determination. "Izzy, if you would stay here with Underhill. Keep him from...from slipping away. I'm not sure how long this will take. Magnus, would you come with me?"

"Of course." He grabs Alec's hand in his, squeezing it lightly. "I'd follow you anywhere, Alexander."

"I hate to interrupt the moment," Catarina says from the doorway. "But I'm pretty sure you guys should be doing whatever it is you should be doing to save this guys life."

"Good point as always my dear. Alec, lead the way." 

Magnus isn't sure where he expects Alec to lead him. Out the door, into the city at least. Instead, eyes fixed to the ground to follow a string only he can see, Alec turns out of the hospital wing and deeper into the Institute.

They get several strange looks. Magnus grew up here, knows almost everyone, and in turn they know him. They're used to him doing weird things. 

But holding the hand of a warlock as he wanders down halls, the warlock staring intensely at the floor? That probably takes the cake. (At least in Magnus memory which doesn't stretch back through his entire childhood or most of the nights he gets drunk.)

They go up a staircase to the second floor, through the dorm rooms where Shadowhunters who are only in New York on a temporary basis stay.

They pass through the hall for ordinary soldiers and into the ones for visiting Clave officials. Basically just bigger and nicer rooms.

An uneasy feeling stirs in Magnus' gut. He's pretty sure they only have one Clave delegate staying with them at the moment…

"Alexander, are you sure this is the correct place?" 

"Yes." Alec says, coming to a stop before a door. They're numbered here, for visitors. This one says  **14 ** in large brass numbers. 

Before Magnus can stop him, Alec raises a hand and knocks. 

The door creaks open.

"Can I...help you?" Lorenzo Rey asks.

He's wearing black pants and a blue tank top. His hands are wrapped and his shirt a bit damp from sweat. The door opens enough for Magnus to see a punching bag in the room which presumably Lorenzo had been using a moment ago. 

Alec smiles tightly. "I certainly hope so."

Neither of them were expecting this. Underhill's fated, a Shadowhunter?  _ Lorenzo?  _ Of all the people, even all the nephilim in the world, the one Magnus had a load of ugly, unresolved history with. 

"Look, Lorenzo, we kind of have a massive life threatening situation on our hands, need your help, and really don't have time to explain."

Alec gives him a bit of side eye, probably because of his harsh tone.  _ Shit,  _ he'd never told Alec about Lorenzo.

Camille yes, but not him. But this is not the time nor place to work through those issues, so Magnus bites his tongue.

"What Magnus is trying to say is that there's a man under a curse that is slowing killing him laying in the medical wing right now. And I believe you are the only one who can help him."

Lorenzo stares at them both for a moment. "Let me just. Let me put on a shirt real quick."

÷÷÷

"You want me to do  _ what? _ "

"Kiss him." Alec repeats. "I know this all seems... strange. But true love's kiss is kind of our last resort, so work with me here."

Lorenzo glances at Underhill, who's now even paler and even more vampire looking. It's creepy. 

"And I just have to...kiss him. And he's healed?"

"Ideally, yes."

Another glance at Underhill. "Okay. I mean, there's no harm in trying, right?" Lorenzo nods to himself, moving closer to the bed.

Izzy, standing next to Magnus, reaches down and grips his hand as Lorenzo leans down.

Presses his lips lightly to Underhill's.

The warlock's eyes flutter open.

_ It worked. _

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Missouri weather being wonky and getting me a snow day barly into November, allowing me to finish writing this chapter just now? More likely than you think.
> 
> Epilogue will be up as soon as I finish it


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is too short, too fast moving, and nothing like my outline said it should be. But I really wanted it out of my drafts and for this to be completed.
> 
> *Throws this at you guys and ducks back into my dark cave*

"You know, a few things are making more sense now." Magnus says, placing his hands on his hips as he surveyed the room.

Cat happening to be at Izzy's place a week ago, a few weird questions from Alec and Raphael. Simon acting even stranger than normal the past few days.

"You honestly didn't see this coming?" Ragnor asks. "I thought for sure Simon would give it away."

"Not at all."

Alec and Underhill's living room had been transformed. Streamers hung from the walls and ceiling. Blue balloons littered the floor. A hand painted banner hung above the front door reading  _ Happy Birthday Magnus. _

It's the biggest birthday party he's had in years. His normal tradition included getting drunk and singing terrible karaoke with his friends.

_ This is much better,  _ Magnus decides, cuddling on the couch with Alec and playing charades. 

Izzy and Simon are ahead when he runs out of punch and gets up to grab more from the kitchen. Which is why Magnus happens to be closest to the door when someone knocks.

"I got it," he tells the room and opens it with a smile on his face. 

He's not expecting the man he finds on the other side. And Lorenzo Rey obviously isn't expecting Magnus either. They both freeze.

"Magnus? Who is it?" Alec calls out from the living room. He's saved from having to answer by Underhill materializing at his side.

" _ Lorenzo _ , hi." The warlock breathes. "Sorry, I completely lost track of time… Oh, this is Alec's boyfriend. You guys met last week right?"

"We've met." Magnus agrees, making a snap decision. "Actually, Underhill, could you give us a moment?"

Underhill frowns, probably noticing both of their still postures. 

"It's okay, Andrew. We do need to...talk." Lorenzo reassures him. 

Without waiting for an answer, Magnus steps into the hall and pulls the door shut behind him. 

"I swear I didn't know you'd be here, Magnus. I'm just here to pick up Andrew for our second date-" Lorenzo starts before Magnus holds up a hand to silence him.

"You and Underhill are somehow destined for each other, I'm dating Alec, and the two of them are best friends. So I think it's best we… clear some things up. Get some closure that I've been looking for, for a while. That I've been too afraid to actually seek. 

"So please, Lorenzo. I need to know. Why did you do it? I thought we were _ friends."  _ Magnus' v cracks embarrassingly but he goes on. " _ Why  _ did you agree to help them hurt me?"

"I wonder that myself every day," Lorenzo admits, wrapping his arms around himself and staring at the ground. "The best and most honest answer is that I was scared."

Magnus shakes his head. "What, of the bullies? We held our own against them."

"No, of myself. And you. Of my feelings for you. Magnus, I- I didn't care about you the way a friend should. Not in the end. And bring around you was such hell, everyday, I couldn't live with it. 

"I hated myself, and I hated you. I used that hatred to justify taking that deal. And Magnus, you have to believe I regretted it. The second I agreed and every moment since. I'm so,  _ so  _ sorry about how it all ended."

And that. Well, that was not what Magnus expected. All the nights he'd lay in bed and wondered what in Raziel's name had led Lorenzo to betray him in such a way, unrequited feelings and internalized homophobia had never occurred to him. 

"I'm...not sure how to react to that. But I suppose if you're going to be here for a few more months, I don't have to right now. So how about I get back to my friends and family, and you go on that date. And later... we'll figure it out."

It wasn't forgiveness, but it was a start. It was an apology, and an excuse. One that Magnus could ponder later. 

He was in no rush.

÷÷÷

It's dark before the party ends. Of course since it's December that's not hard to do, but it's still impressive that there had been no major arguments. Probably because Cat, Raphael, and Ragnor were too busy interrogating Alec about his intentions or whatever to start any trouble. 

Once they finish off the cake hey order pizza. Izzy somehow produces a gaming console and they play a game called Just Dance for a long time before switching to a couple other games. Simon, with his mundae upbringing is the main competition for Izzy, since the rest of them have very little experience with video games. 

Magnus could have sat around playing games, telling stories, laughing, and drinking for the rest of the night. But Alec did not have his stamina for social interaction. His boyfriend's smile starts to drop around four o'clock and is completely fake by the time Magnus shoos everyone out of the apartment. 

Underhill isn't back yet, so they put on a movie and snuggle up on the couch together under a blanket. But only after Alec had used magic to clean up despite Magnus' protest that he would do it in a bit.

"Thank you for this," Magnus says, head on Alec's chest. "I know you're not a big fan of gatherings of people."

"It's no problem. I liked meeting your friends. Even if they didn't veil their threats very well." He chuckles at Magnus' groan of embarrassment. "No, really. I had fun today. I hope you did too."

"Yeah, it did. Thank you again Alec. You're the best boyfriend I could ever ask for."

"Well, you're the best boyfriend  _ I _ could ask for too. I'm glad we found each other."

Magnus let's his eyes drift close, let's himself relax in Alec's strong arms and scent of cheap body wash. "Me too."

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not a perfect ending, but it's done at least. Thank you to everyone who supported this and me


End file.
